User:Basilosauridae/sandbox/Navanax

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California aglaja
From Santa Barbara, California
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Mollusca
Class:
Gastropoda
(unranked):
clade Heterobranchia

clade Euthyneura
clade Euopisthobranchia

clade Cephalaspidea
Superfamily:
Philinoidea
Family:
Aglajidae
Genus:
Navanax
Species:
N. inermis
Binomial name
Navanax inermis
(Cooper, 1863)
Synonyms
  • Doridium purpureum (Bergh, 1894)
  • Posterobranchaea maculata d'Orbigny, 1835 (nomen oblitum)
  • Strategus inermis J.G. Cooper, 1863 (basionym)

Navanax inermis, common name the California aglaja, is a large

mollusk in the family Aglajidae. Navanax is not a nudibranch, even though it somewhat resembles one; it belongs to a more ancient lineage of opisthobranchs called the cephalaspideans
or head shield slugs and snails.

Description

The body of N. inermis can be tan, black, or purple, with yellowish streaks.[1] Yellow or orange streaks and blue dots are visible on the margins.[1] It has two large parapodial folds that run the length of either side of the body, and almost touch at the midsection.[1] This species possesses a small internal shell.[2][1] Individuals are typically between 2.5 and 10 inches in length.[1]

N. inermis does not possess a radula or organs associated with vision.[1][3]

Distribution and habitat

This species occurs in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Gulf of California. Its range is from Monterey, California to Baja California.[4]

N. inermis can commonly be found on rocky intertidal regions and subtidal mudflats.[1][2][3]

Ecology

Diet

Navanax inermis is a voracious carnivorous predator.[2] Common prey items include other sea slugs, like bubble snails and nudibranchs, and small fish.[5][4] As N. inermis lacks visual perception, it finds prey by using its chemoreceptors to follow the slime trails of other organisms.[1][3][4]

Reproduction

N. inermis is a

simultaneous hermaphrodite.[6] Copulation can occur in groups, commonly referred to as chains, of up to four individuals.[6] In the southern portion of its range, N. inermis spawns year round, producing upwards of 800,000 eggs at a time.[4] After 7 to 19 days of development, embryos are released and live as plankton.[4]

Locomotion

N. inermis slides over surfaces with the help of a mucopolysaccharide slime trail.[3]

Defense

When disturbed, N. inermis secretes a bright yellow substance into its slime trail, which can persist for several hours. This secretion causes some other organisms to break pursuit of the slug.[3]

References

  1. ^
    OCLC 18520858.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  2. ^
    OCLC 5310036.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  3. ^
    S2CID 35392274
    .
  4. ^
    JSTOR 1935000
    .
  5. ^ "The Sea Slug Forum - Navanax inermis". www.seaslugforum.net. 2010-07-15. Retrieved 2018-08-12.
  6. ^
    ISSN 0008-4301
    .
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