Opisthobranchiate Mollusca from Ghana: Dendrodorididae and Corambidae

Submitted by admin on
MALCOLM EDMUNDS
(2007)
Volume
39
Part
3
Page from
253

Three species of Dendrodorididae and one of Corambidae are described from Ghana, West Africa. Dendrodoris guineana Valdés and Ortea, 1996 is only known from this region but may be part of a cline round the west African coast, currently divided into several species. Another specimen of Dendrodoris was not fully mature and could not be definitively assigned to one of these species. Further material of Doriopsilla albolineata Edmunds, 1968 is described but is here recognised as forming part of a cline from Europe to West Africa. It is therefore considered to be a subspecies, albolineata Edmunds, 1968, of Doriopsilla areolata Bergh, 1880. It is proposed that West Atlantic and Indo-Pacific material which have been considered to be conspecific with D. areolata should be recognised as distinct species, Doriopsilla nigrolineata Meyer, 1977 and Doriopsilla davisi (Allan, 1933) respectively. Corambe testudinaria Fischer, 1889, reported here for the first time from West Africa, occurs on both sides of the Atlantic and may travel widely either on Sargassum or on the hulls of boats. The genera and valid species of the Corambidae are reviewed.

Keywords
Atlantic nudibranchs
Corambe
Dendrodoris
Doriopsila