grey blob eating digitata tip

[Sk8r]

Never had a predator show up before, and haven't introduced a new specimen for weeks, but bingo! this week I get 2.

Asterina: nabbed. It was only getting the coralline, but it was too near the sps.

Then the Unidentified: a pearl grey round blob the size of a matchhead, with a darker grey center. Even on close examination, it had the configuration of a crab, even the illusion of legs and claws,just from the general shape. I tweezed it off. It had the consistency of rubber, but was a blob of gelatin. It had clearly munched 3 ends, but not badly. ID?

 

[Sk8r]

Wow, 76 views and nobody's got a clue on this grey blob? I hope I didn't murder a new species!

 

[Sk8r]

105 and no id. I think I may have killed a unique life form.

 

[venwu225]

maybe a picture would help?

 

[Sk8r]

alas, it's now dried up. I still have it, however, but I don't have a macro lens, and that's what it would properly take. It's just a round matchhead sized grey flatness with a darker grey center. At the time I was stalking the thing I was convinced it was a crab and I was trying to sneak up on it fast. It turned out to be not a fast mover, but about the consistency of hard rubber.

 

[keckles]

You described a small, gray invertebrate that might have what could possibly be considered to be legs but probably aren't. No offense, but that isn't much to work with. I would expect more from a writer.

Just to give you something to ponder; Nudibranch?

 

[Sk8r]

Grin. Or expect more from a photographer. If it's round, gray, and toughly gelatinous, it's pretty hard to wax poetical...

Nudi did occur to me. I've never tweezed one, and always assumed they were fragile. But if it was one, it was all bunched up, not long, like nudis I'm familiar with. I'm sure going to watch out for more.

 

[keckles]

They are fragile, but they will maintain their structure even out of water. They aren't going to turn into a goop of jelly if that's what you're thinking.

The best thing for you to do would be to take a picture. But, you could also try searching for pictures to compare. It is a pretty vague description, but my guess for now is small + gray + blob + eating Montipora = possible nudibranch. Perhaps the "legs" are the "gill" structures on their dorsal side?

Good luck in your search.

 

[Sk8r]

Atys caribaeus---not quite it, but real close: looks like a bubbleshell sea slug of about 2 cm with a suspicious inclination toward montipora. The sea slug forum has so many you could spend a long, long time wading through them. What I couldn't find was what they eat. Some sea slugs go for flatworms, but that fellow had no flatworms at hand to blame and there was a hole in the growth end of my montipora. So he's guilty by association with said hole, imho. And the bubbleshell would account for his hard core with gelatinous covering... So we don't have an id, precisely, but might have come close, thank you for the hint.