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Goniobranchus obsoletus

Akhziv Canyon · 2023 · Photo: Boaz Liebes

Goniobranchus obsoletus (Rüppell & Leuckart, 1830)

Israel · Mediterranean

Migrant species Observed: 2015–2025
Size
⁦10–25⁩ mm
Depth
⁦1–20⁩ m
Native range
Red Sea, Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea

Description

A small chromodorid from the Red Sea and Persian Gulf. When first reported off Israel in 2015 it was already "quite common" off Tel Aviv; it has since spread to Syria, Cyprus and Turkey.

Share link: https://seaslugs.org.il/species/goniobranchus-obsoletus-israel-mediterranean/

Identification

Milky white mantle with raised pustules and an orange-brown network between them. Orange mantle edge with an irregular blue-black band inside it. Translucent brown rhinophores and gills outlined in white.

Similar species

Goniobranchus annulatus is larger, with orange spots and purple rings around the rhinophores and gills.

Habitat & diet

Habitat

Shallow rocky reefs and cave walls, ~1–20 m.

Food

Sponges, mainly Chelonaplysilla violacea.

In the Mediterranean

  1. 2015First recordTel Aviv, Israel
  2. 2025Latest documented recordLatakia, Syria and Tel Aviv, Israel
Status
Established in the Levant
Route of arrival
Lessepsian (Suez Canal)
Sources (3)
Goniobranchus obsoletus