Bermudella mica

Bermudella mica (Ortea & Moro, 2014)

• Okenia mica Ortea & Moro, 2014

Taxonomic note
This species was described by Ortea and Moro within the genus Okenia. However, the revision of the family Gonodorididae carried out by Paz-Sedano et al. (2024) using both morphological and molecular analyses showed that the species richness of this group worldwide had been seriously underestimated. In the same study they re-described this species as Bermudella mica based on a detailed internal morphological study that was missing from the original description.

Description
Adult animals do not exceed 3 mm in length. Body shape is limaciform and slender, about 6 times as long as it is wide, with a narrow transparent crest that surrounds the notum, in which there are five translucent white papillae with opaque white spots. The smallest papilla, with a yellow spotted base, is located in front of each rhinophore; three longer papillae are arranged between the rhinophores and the gill, and the fifth, the longest, is located behind the gill. Two large dorsal papillae appear between the rhinophores and the gill, the largest being the one located on the cardiac prominence, in front of the gill. It lacks a frontal veil. The dorsal coloration of the body is whitish, with more or less diffused reddish spots that form a large spot behind the rhinophores. The sides of the body have red and white spots, more abundant towards the tail. Rhinophores proportionally large compared to the size of the animal, with a white distal mucron and 4-5 lamellae on the upper half, spotted red and all similarly sized. The lower half of the rhinophores is smooth with reddish spots. The head has two cylindrical oral tentacles with white ends. The gill is small, made up of three branchial leaves of the same color as the body; the central leaf is bipinnate and the lateral ones are unipinnate. The mantle has a structure of spicules related to the dorsal papillae, the gill and the paleal crest, the sides of the body have no spicules except under the eyes.

Biology
The egg spawn is a cord of 0.5 mm in diameter folded on itself with white eggs of about 80 μm in diameter. The eggs form transverse lines of 5-6 eggs, arranged in 2-3 layers inside the cord. The specimens used for its description were collected from a submerged line at a depth of about 2 meters, and among the bryozoans of a submerged wall at a depth of about 4 meters.

Etymology

• mica, from Latin mica-ae, crumb, particle, because of its small size.

Distribution
This species has only been cited in the Canary Islands, in Tenerife (specimens of the original description), Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura.

Known georeferenced records of the species: Bermudella mica

Sources:
OBIS GROC 2010-2011 Enric Madrenas João Pedro Silva Bernard Picton GBIF	OPK VIMAR Manuel Ballesteros M@re Nostrum Altres fonts Marine Regions

More pictures

Bermudella mica @ Lanzarote by Dennis Rabeling

Bermudella mica with egg spawn @ Lanzarote by Dennis Rabeling

Bermudella mica @ Lanzarote by Dennis Rabelling

Bermudella mica (Ortea & Moro, 2014) A) Lateral profile B) Body spicules layout C) Radular teeth D) egg spawn

Bermudella mica @ La Laja, Gran Canaria

Bermudella mica @ Gran Canaria by Mario Matute

Bermudella mica @ Gran Canaria by Mario Matute

Bermudella mica @ La Laja, Gran Canaria by Mario Matute

Bermudella mica @ La Laja, Gran Canaria by Mario Matute

Bermudella mica @ La Laja, Gran Canaria by Mario Matute

Bibliography

1246567 Bermudella mica 1 eunomia-revista-en-cultura-de-la-legalidad 50 creator asc 1 36781 https://opistobranquis.info/wp-content/plugins/zotpress/
Bibliography based on the works by Steve Long, 2006. Bibliography of Opisthobranchia 1554-2000 and Gary McDonald, 2009. Bibliographia Nudibranchia, with later updates from other resources.

Further reading

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