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Description
Plakobranchus is a genus of sacoglossan sea slugs in the family Plakobranchidae (according to Wikipedia; WoRMS access was blocked). P. ocellatus is the widely known species, living in the Indo-Pacific in sheltered shallow habitats with stones, gravel and silt and feeding on green algae such as Halimeda, Caulerpa and Udotea. It sequesters chloroplasts from the algae (kleptoplasty) and can survive long periods without food. Research shows P. ocellatus is a complex of at least four clades, and Wikipedia lists three species.
Identification
The body is flattened (up to about 4 cm) with a squarish head, folded rhinophores and closely set eyes visible through the translucent skin. At rest the parapodia fold over the midline of the body. The colour is pale green, beige or cream with large ocelli in cream, brown, pink and purple.
Species in this genus (2)
Sources (2)
Share link: https://seaslugs.org.il/genus/Plakobranchus/