Nudibranch ID

[ArtsyAxolotl]

Ok so I need a bit of help IDing the species I have here. I asked the owner of my LFS (one I shop at quite a bit as I trust the owner and have become friends with him) to get me an Elysia Crispata lettuce slug. I gave him the exact scientific name because I wanted to ensure my animal would have the best chance at tackling the algae problem in my tank (hair algae of some kind, none of my algae eaters seem interested).

Anyway, I went down to pick it up today and.. it's not an E. Crispata. It's very clearly a Nudibranch (exposed gills and all). It wasn't the owner's fault. He thought he ordered the right thing and knew immediately when he saw it that it wasn't right. When we double checked his ordering list it's actually something called a Tridachia Crispata, a genus I've never even heard of and doesn't appear in any of my Nudibranch books.

When you search Tridachia Crispata it brings up E. Clarki so is it just a confused scientific name??

I've attached pictures of him. I'm more concerned about it being toxic to my tank if it dies than anything else. Since I got stuck with something different from what I was hoping for, I'm just going to make the best of it and learn about them with the time I have. Otherwise they'll just go back to my LFS and die there. At least I can enjoy them in the meantime.

Any ideas?

 

[ArtsyAxolotl]

After pouring over my books for a bit I'm wondering if maybe it's a Miamira sinuatum? It looks quite similar, although it's hard to tell because it looks like M. Sinuatum comes in many colors. If that's the case then my poor little fella won't be able to eat anything in my tank (I highly doubt the 3 types of sponge in my tank are the kind he'll eat). Thoughts?

 

[ginpang]

Nudibranch ID

I was about to say it looked a bit like glossodoris ghanensis . But they are not from common collection sites.

The suggestion above seems the most likely one


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[ArtsyAxolotl]

That does look similar too. I'm thinking it could also be a Ceratosoma Sinuatum. Found those in my books and on The Sea Slug Forum. Which if that's the case, I definitely can't feed it. I just wish I knew if it was deadly to my tank or not. It's fun to watch.

I don't know what to do with it now... I have a little 3 gallon tank that I could put it in temporarily but I don't have any sort of lighting for it, and there's no way to put a filter on a 3 gallon. Ugh. I'm a little bit sad now.

 

[ginpang]

[emoji848]that also looks the part and available from the Philippines [emoji1198] make sense... had you read the first related topic on the bottom of the seaslug page ... entitled :" another misleading aquarium sale" . Sounds like your story.


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[ArtsyAxolotl]

Went back to look at the page and, oh, yea. that sounds exactly like what happened to me. I find the sea slug forum a little hard to navigate so I didn't even notice those topics at the bottom.

I moved it out of the display tank and into the 3 gallon for the night. Just so nothing wild happens while I'm sleeping. I'll have to talk to the guy I got it from tomorrow and see what he wants to do. Cuz I'm at a loss as to what to do with it.. I wish I could just let it go back into it's natural habitat but there's no chance I'll be able to do that.

 

[ginpang]

At this point the best chance it has may be to donate it to an Aquarium or a University with a very strong marine biology program and research facilities.
In my early twenties , i tried to maintain a hitchhiker with the idea ( theory) that it ate sponges that are in the same colour scheme as their own pattern.
That turned out to be very costly and not very efficient. Even if, back then , I was the lfs person ordering , the items received aren't always the ones ordered.

The shipping is so expensive the expediter knows that you won't send it back on a 24 hour direct flight for a refund of 30$


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[pagojoe]

Yes, I think you have it right, Ceratosoma sinuatum. Miamira = Ceratosoma here.

 

[ArtsyAxolotl]

Donating it is actually a wonderful idea. If anyone has any specific suggestions of places that might take it I'll definitely do that. Otherwise I'll take a little bit to research some places and see. I basically got it for free so I don't mind eating a shipping cost to get it somewhere where it might be a little more comfortable and it's death won't be in vain.

thanks for clearing up the genus naming pagojoe! It's insane how many types of nudis there are (so far!).

As sad as it makes me to see these beautiful little guys sold in the aquarium trade, I can't say I blame people for wanting to own one.

 

[adimitris]

Ok so I need a bit of help IDing the species I have here. I asked the owner of my LFS (one I shop at quite a bit as I trust the owner and have become friends with him) to get me an Elysia Crispata lettuce slug. I gave him the exact scientific name because I wanted to ensure my animal would have the best chance at tackling the algae problem in my tank (hair algae of some kind, none of my algae eaters seem interested).

Anyway, I went down to pick it up today and.. it's not an E. Crispata. It's very clearly a Nudibranch (exposed gills and all). It wasn't the owner's fault. He thought he ordered the right thing and knew immediately when he saw it that it wasn't right. When we double checked his ordering list it's actually something called a Tridachia Crispata, a genus I've never even heard of and doesn't appear in any of my Nudibranch books.

When you search Tridachia Crispata it brings up E. Clarki so is it just a confused scientific name??

I've attached pictures of him. I'm more concerned about it being toxic to my tank if it dies than anything else. Since I got stuck with something different from what I was hoping for, I'm just going to make the best of it and learn about them with the time I have. Otherwise they'll just go back to my LFS and die there. At least I can enjoy them in the meantime.

Any ideas?

Wow!!!! Wanna trade? ( : ) )

If you pay shipping, (and maybe some of the gas cost to drive down to the Keys) I can send you some elysia crispatas, and by the way, e. clarki and e. crispata were determined to be the same creature and that is not either. I would guess it is from the South pacific/Indian Ocean. if you send me better photos I can try to ID it for you. Can you email me directly? I am not sure if that is allowed on this site. my email is escherandme2001@yahoo.com If it is not allowed, tell me how you can send me better photos.

I have had elysias in my various little tanks. They live for many months, but I think they starve because they reduce in size over time. I think they eat somewhat specific algae. I can gladly help you in the next week or so, but I cannot offer you "safe' specimens b/c they have not been quarantined, unless you want me to do that for you and you explain how to make them safe for your tank. If I can do it, I will. I hope everything I am posting is "legal" here.