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Dendritic sea slug, branched sapsucker
Mollusc
Dendritic sea slug, branched sapsucker
Placida dendritica (Alder and Hancock, 1843)
WoRMS AphialID
141565
Sample IDs
NSRAS25-074A|https://bench.boldsystems.org/index.php/MAS_DataRetrieval_OpenSpecimen?selectedrecordid=ATCMO623-25; NSRAS25-074B|https://bench.boldsystems.org/index.php/MAS_DataRetrieval_OpenSpecimen?selectedrecordid=ATCMO624-25
Collected
Camp Cove Harbour NS, hand collection of green algae off dock pilings.
Distinguishing Features
• Head: anterior margin is rounded. The main ‘tentacles’ are the rhinophores which are auriculate (ear-like), being rolled over instead of solid. There is a pair of eyes just behind the base of the rhinophores.
• Body: translucent white with dark green dendritic (tree-like) branching formed by the digestive gland. The body is cylindrical with a tapered tail. In mature individuals, there are about 50 cerata in groups of 3-5 on each side.
• Size: to 11 mm.
Habitat
Intertidal and shallow subtidal rocky areas, feeding on green algae such as the widespread invasive dead man’s fingers, Codium fragile.
Geographic Range
Widespread across temperate waters of the Northern Hemisphere from the North Pacific across the North Atlantic. In the Northwest Atlantic, occurs from the Bay of Fundy south to Virginia.
Fun Fact
P.dendritica is a saccoglossan, or a sap-sucking sea slug. This group of sea slugs are known for sequestering the chloroplasts of the algae they eat to photosynthesize and produce food for themselves. Like other sacoglosssans, the radula of P.dendritica is made up of bladelike teeth used to pierce into algal cells. The individual then sucks out the cell contents and keep the chloroplasts in its own tissue.
Barcode Distribution
Amphi-Atlantic BIN matching specimens from Virginia and Europe.
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