Purple Octopus - using citizen science to discover marine interactions
This is the entity page showing aggregated messages and images for the named entity.


Phyllodesmium koehleri

Burghardt, Schröl & Wägele, 2008


Gary Cobb We also found our 3rd Phyllodesmium koehleri Burghardt, Schroedl & Wagele, 2008 30 mm Caloundra Nudi Ledge

Roy Arthur David Lontoh amazing!

Gary Cobb You're not kidding!

Cindy Alford Just Eatting Some Grass......D700 Aqua housing dual Ikelite strobes... ISO 200 1/125 f22 Anilao found this guy eating some grass.......

Ron Silver Nice. Phyllodesmium koehleri

Shane Siers Like like like.

Annie Bodar superbe merci

Christina Wassink Nice

Message posted on Underwater Macro Photographers on 19 Nov 2013
Ron Silver https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10201876546867557&set=gm.554821067937473&type=1&relevant_count=1&ref=nf

Ron Silver Thanx, cindy

Ron Silver Nice. Phyllodesmium koehleri

Annie Bodar superbe merci

Message posted on The Global Diving Community on 19 Nov 2013
Eric Banzon Noora Appreciate help on Phyllidiella ID of these 2 nudis. Thanks :-)

Blogie Robillo The one on the right is most likely P. pustulosa -- I have a similar one that I thought might be something else, but was told otherwise. The one on the left... P. granulata or P. lizae?

Gary Cobb These both look like Phyllidiella pustulosa but it would be nice and sometimes vital to ID them, to know where the Nudibranchs came from and their size.

Eric Banzon Noora Sorry for the lack of info Gary Cobb. Both are from Anilao in the Philippines. The one on the left is about 50mm while the one on the right is about 76mm.

Erwin Koehler The left species might be Phyllidiopsis fissurata or possibly Phyllidiopsis krempfi both of them can be identified by the rhinophores: pink on anterior face and around base, black on apex and posterior face...I need a lateral view!

Eric Banzon Noora Thanks Erwin Koehler. Unfortunately wasn't able to get lateral pictures. Next time I spot one of these will make sure to get some. However, checked the pics again and a close-up of the rhinophores would suggest a dual color nature. Will post them and see if they would be of help. Cheers!

Eric Banzon Noora Hi Erwin Koehler. Here are some links to the close-ups. Hope they help :-) http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151004725304157&set=a.10150837649934157.401597.682219156&type=3&theater http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151004725464157&set=a.10150837649934157.401597.682219156&type=3&theater

Gary Cobb After seeing this close up I would agree with Erwin this looks like Phyllidiopsis fissurata. I can see at the bottom of the photo a very compound pustule. Like pustules on a stalk!

Gary Cobb And you can see the pink on the front of the rhinophores.

Eric Banzon Noora Thanks Gary Cobb! cheers :-)

Gary Cobb You're quite welcome!

Eric Banzon Noora Seems I would have to revisit my Phyllidiella spottings and see if they might be a different species altogether. And next time, would try to get more angles and close-ups. Problem sometimes is that they are in a very unyielding position that it would be quite impossible to get other angles. In these instances would it be ok to get them and stage a better photo op? Have always tried to capture them as is where is. Case in point (and oh would appreciate an ID as well - not sure if it is a P. granulata) - : http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150350097849157&set=a.10150350093644157.347156.682219156&type=3&theater

Erwin Koehler Now, since I had to stop diving many years ago I like to tell: I took the first shot exactly how I found the animal, because it is often found on its food source and for many species is there a still a big question mark! Then I tried to find a nice place for me (and my fins!), -almost always a rock in the sand- placed the animal there and took pics from different angles, some nice ones for ID, some nice looking ones for the brancher community, then I tried to bring the sea slug back to the place where I found it. Ps for many species IDs is it good to have a ventral picture so you must turn the specimen upside down...for example: some Phyllidiids have a median black line at the foot-sole, others not, easy to distinguish, or some species of Platydoris have distinct spots at the underside of the mantle.. I know many divers will not like to read this, but I also collected and preserved many specimens, several specimens of Phyllodesmium koehleri and many other "solar powered" sea slugs for the research of Ingo Burghardt on zooxanthellae, who gave it my name "koehleri" as a 'thank you' for my work. here is how I know the sizes of the animals: http://www.medslugs.de/E/Pac-W/Pleurobranchus_grandis_12.htm or here http://www.medslugs.de/E/Pac-W/Gymnodoris_aurita_05.htm

Eric Banzon Noora Thanks for the insights and tips Erwin. Who knows with these, maybe one of these days a slug can be named after me. Though not sure how nice that would sound lol. Btw any ideas on the ID of the last link I sent? P. granulata?

Gary Cobb So you found a beautiful Nudibranch and want to name it... Read this paper recently describing 3 new species of Phyllodesmium, including the Phyllodesmium koehleri I found yesterday. http://www.nudibranch.com.au/Burghardt%20et%20al_2008b.pdf

Phil Trezise That is some serious reading! I would rather just enjoy finding and photographing them, I am too lazy to do all that hard science stuff!

Gary Cobb Believe it or not it takes the same amount of scientific writing and research to describe a 2 mm nudibranch as it does to describe a new species of Giraffe!

Ken Thongpila It is... what I was thinking Phil Trezise :-) It's hard work and now I just enjoy taking photos and to see just new species :-) and Thanks Gary :-) it is very serious work... Indeed!

Gary Cobb Oh yea! The joy is in the hunt!

Ken Thongpila Yep and let you do the paper work and research :-) hehehe

Taxonomy
Animalia (Kingdom)
  Mollusca (Phylum)
    Gastropoda (Class)
      Heterobranchia (Subclass)
        Opisthobranchia (Infraclass)
          Nudibranchia (Order)
            Dexiarchia (Suborder)
              Aeolidida (Infraorder)
                Aeolidioidea (Superfamily)
                  Facelinidae (Family)
                    Phyllodesmium (Genus)
                      Phyllodesmium koehleri (Species)
Associated Species