Sea Slugs of the Word, Japan
Info
The specimens Clione okhotensis were sampled from 2015 to 2016 in the shallow waters of the southern Sea of Okhotsk along a coastal section from Menashidomari to Abashiri, in coastal waters off Mombetsu, Hokkaido, Japan in very shallow water zones of 0.3 to 1.5 meters.
Here, 500 specimens of §lat and more than 8,000 specimens of the sympatric species Clione limacina were collected for comparison, as well as 17 specimens of Limacina helicina (shell length 1-2 mm) to feed the sea butterflies.
Larvae of Clione okhotensis were collected in April and May 2010 at sites 1 km off Mombetsu at depths of up to 9.5 meters.
Clione okhotensis is a pelagic swimming snail with a long and larval body, the sea butterfly is more barrel-shaped than other species.
The body has the shape of a cylinder that tapers to a point at one end and emerges at the other end in two wing-like parapodia.
Beneath the parapodia, the head protrudes like a small gemstone, with two crescent-shaped lobes that act as mouth tentacles.
The body is transparent white, in which the internal organs are visible. The pointed end of the body has an outer red pigmentation that forms a strong red tip.
Clione is colloquially known as a sea butterfly, and the English term "sea angel" fits its appearance perfectly.
Despite its angelic appearance, the snail is a predator that feeds on other shell-bearing sea butterflies (Thecosomata).
The predatory behavior of the new species was initiated in the presence of prey and occurs in the following order:
(1) Foraging behavior: Swimming with the body extended and excreting a sticky liquid (shown as a veil on the wings in Fig. 4A);
(2) Searching behavior: the hooks and/or the six humpback cones are turned over and retracted (Fig. 4B, C)
(3) Prey manipulation behavior: The prey, Limacina helicina, is quickly manipulated with the hooks in such a way that its shell opening is pressed against the predator's mouth (Fig. 4D).
The chitinous hooks are then ejected from the hook sacs and inserted into the soft tissue of the prey.
When the Clione has a firm grip on the prey, the hooks and the radula will pull the body out of the snail shell before the prey is swallowed whole.
The genus name "Clione" comes from Greek mythology and is named after "Cleio", the protector of historiography, she is the daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the mother of the nine muses.
The species name "okhotensis" refers to the place where the snail is found, the Sea of Okhotsk, a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean in East Asia between Russia and Japan.
Clione okhotensis plays an important role in the pelagic ecosystem, it is a predator for other sea butterflies, an important link in the food chain between planktonic algae and zooplankton and an important prey for marine mammals and fish.
Our special thanks go to Nobuhiko Kimoto, Japan, Manager of SEASLUG.WORLD https://seaslug.world/, who kindly gave us written permission to use the photo taken by Mr. Watanabe.
Literature reference:
Journal of Molluscan Studies (2017)
The Malacological Society of London83: 19-26.
doi:10.1093/mollus/eyw032
Advance Access publication date: September 26, 2016
https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-new-species-of-Clione-distinguished-from-C.-in-on-Yamazaki-Kuwahara/a148e713ce35d1e72ce277fcfe85c9ac499d160e
Here, 500 specimens of §lat and more than 8,000 specimens of the sympatric species Clione limacina were collected for comparison, as well as 17 specimens of Limacina helicina (shell length 1-2 mm) to feed the sea butterflies.
Larvae of Clione okhotensis were collected in April and May 2010 at sites 1 km off Mombetsu at depths of up to 9.5 meters.
Clione okhotensis is a pelagic swimming snail with a long and larval body, the sea butterfly is more barrel-shaped than other species.
The body has the shape of a cylinder that tapers to a point at one end and emerges at the other end in two wing-like parapodia.
Beneath the parapodia, the head protrudes like a small gemstone, with two crescent-shaped lobes that act as mouth tentacles.
The body is transparent white, in which the internal organs are visible. The pointed end of the body has an outer red pigmentation that forms a strong red tip.
Clione is colloquially known as a sea butterfly, and the English term "sea angel" fits its appearance perfectly.
Despite its angelic appearance, the snail is a predator that feeds on other shell-bearing sea butterflies (Thecosomata).
The predatory behavior of the new species was initiated in the presence of prey and occurs in the following order:
(1) Foraging behavior: Swimming with the body extended and excreting a sticky liquid (shown as a veil on the wings in Fig. 4A);
(2) Searching behavior: the hooks and/or the six humpback cones are turned over and retracted (Fig. 4B, C)
(3) Prey manipulation behavior: The prey, Limacina helicina, is quickly manipulated with the hooks in such a way that its shell opening is pressed against the predator's mouth (Fig. 4D).
The chitinous hooks are then ejected from the hook sacs and inserted into the soft tissue of the prey.
When the Clione has a firm grip on the prey, the hooks and the radula will pull the body out of the snail shell before the prey is swallowed whole.
The genus name "Clione" comes from Greek mythology and is named after "Cleio", the protector of historiography, she is the daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the mother of the nine muses.
The species name "okhotensis" refers to the place where the snail is found, the Sea of Okhotsk, a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean in East Asia between Russia and Japan.
Clione okhotensis plays an important role in the pelagic ecosystem, it is a predator for other sea butterflies, an important link in the food chain between planktonic algae and zooplankton and an important prey for marine mammals and fish.
Our special thanks go to Nobuhiko Kimoto, Japan, Manager of SEASLUG.WORLD https://seaslug.world/, who kindly gave us written permission to use the photo taken by Mr. Watanabe.
Literature reference:
Journal of Molluscan Studies (2017)
The Malacological Society of London83: 19-26.
doi:10.1093/mollus/eyw032
Advance Access publication date: September 26, 2016
https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-new-species-of-Clione-distinguished-from-C.-in-on-Yamazaki-Kuwahara/a148e713ce35d1e72ce277fcfe85c9ac499d160e
