Back to family Costasiellid sap-sucking slugsBack to the gallery
Description
Costasiella is a genus of sacoglossan sea slugs in the family Costasiellidae: tiny slugs (about 2-13 mm) that are not true nudibranchs. They feed on green algae such as Vaucheria and Avrainvillea and retain their chloroplasts, and live in shallow areas mainly of the tropical and subtropical western Pacific and also the tropical Atlantic (C. ocellifera). Wikipedia lists about 17 species.
Identification
The body is tiny with cerata arranged in diagonal rows; the rhinophores are usually simple and smooth with dull tips, and the front foot corners are rounded and tentacle-like. The cerata are often green with white tips, and head and rhinophore colours vary between species (in C. kuroshimae a dark head stripe and black-tipped rhinophores).
Species in this genus (2)
Share link: https://seaslugs.org.il/genus/Costasiella/