Notobranchaeidae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Heterobranchia
Clade: Euopisthobranchia
Order: Pteropoda
Superfamily: Clionoidea
Family: Notobranchaeidae
(Pelseneer, 1886)
Genera and species

See text

The Notobranchaeidae, or "naked sea butterflies", are a taxonomic family of floating sea slugs, specifically under the subclass Opistobranchia, also called "sea angels".[1][2]

Similar to other Pteropods, these pelagic marine heterobranch gastropod mollusks[3] are holoplanktonic.[4][5]

Morphology

While they are not particularly strong swimmers, the foot of these organisms is modified into wing-like structures, called parapodia that they employ for locomotion.[5] Additionally, like other Pteropods of the order Gymnosomata,[6] Notobrachaeidae lack shells entirely as adults.[7][8] However, they do possess a shell earlier on in their lives.[8] They are also defined by how they possess a posterior gill, strong jaws, grasping tentacles that frequently possess suckers resembling those of cephalopods, and usually buccal cones as well.[9]

Behavior

Like other members of the clade Gymnosomata, Notobrachaeidae are highly specialized holoplanktonic carnivores.[10] In other words, they spend their entire lives hunting in the water column and cannot swim against the column.[10] Also like other members of this clade, Notobrachaeidae feed are very specific prey, with a species in this clade usually specializing in hunting one specific genus of thecosomes, which are also known as "sea butterflies," and form a sister clade to Gymnosomata with the primary difference being how adults of that clade possess shells into adulthood while Gymnosomata do not.[8][10]

Distribution

Members of this family are found globally throughout the upper reaches of the water column, in the pelagic zone, most commonly the epipelagic zone.[8] Following the trend of Pteropods in general, they tend to have the highest species diversity tropical and subtropical latitudes but are less abundant under these conditions.[8] Conversely, they are more abundant but possess less variety in terms of species closer to the north and south poles.[8] However, even in the tropics, they generally appear in high concentrations, resulting in their frequently playing important roles in planktonic food webs.[4][5][11]

Genera and species

Genera and species in the family Notobranchaeidae include:

Genus: Notobranchaea Pelseneer, 1886

  • Notobranchaea bleekerae van der Spoel & Pafort-van Iersel, 1985
    • Distribution : Oceanic
  • Notobranchaea grandis Pruvot-Fol, 1942
    • Distribution : Oceanic
    • Length : 15 mm
  • Notobranchaea hjorti (Bonnevie, 1913)
  • Notobranchaea inopinata Pelseneer, 1887
    • Distribution : Oceanic
    • Length : 5 mm
  • Notobranchaea longicollis (Bonnevie, 1913)
  • Notobranchaea macdonaldi Pelseneer, 1886
    • Distribution : Bermuda, Oceanic
    • Length : 5 mm
  • Notobranchaea tetrabranchiata Bonnevie, 1913
    • Distribution : Oceanic
    • Length : 16 mm
  • Notobranchaea valdiviae Meisenheimer, 1905
Genera brought into synonymy
  • Microdonta Bonnevie, 1913: synonym of Notobranchaea Pelseneer, 1886 (invalid: junior homonym of Microdonta Dejean, 1835 [Coleoptera]; Schleschia is a replacement name)
  • Prionoglossa Tesch, 1950: synonym of Notobranchaea Pelseneer, 1886
  • Schleschia Strand, 1932: synonym of Notobranchaea Pelseneer, 1886

References

  1. ↑ Karlsson, Lars. Opisthobranchia: A taxonomic and biological review with emphasis on the families Chromodorididae and Phyllidiidae together with field notes from South East Sulawesi, Indonesia (Undergraduate thesis in biology). University of Linköping.
  2. ↑ Spoel, S. van der; Pafort-Van Iersel, T. (1985). "Note on the taxonomy of the family Notobranchaeidae and description of Notobranchaea bleekerae n. sp., a species new to science (Gastropoda, Pteropoda)". Basteria. 49: 29–36.
  3. ↑ Burridge, Alice; Hörnlein, Christine; Janssen, Arie; Hughes, Martin; Bush, Stephanie; et al. (June 2017). "Time-calibrated molecular phylogeny of pteropods". PLOS ONE. 12 (6): e0177325. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1277325B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0177325. PMC 5467808. PMID 28604805. ProQuest 1908757804.
  4. 1 2 Angulo-Campillo, Orso; Aceves-Medina, Gerardo; Avedaño-Ibarra, Raymundo (2011). "Holoplanktonic mollusks (Mollusca: Gastropoda) from the Gulf of California, México". Check List. 7 (3): 337–342. doi:10.15560/7.3.337.
  5. 1 2 3 Sanvicente, Laura (2014). "The holoplanktonic Mollusca from the southern Gulf of Mexico Part 2: pteropods". Cahiers de Biologie Marine. 55: 241–258 – via ResearchGate.
  6. ↑ Taylor, D.; Sohl, N. (1962). "An Outline of Gastropod Classification" (PDF). Malacologia. 1 (1): 7–32 – via Native Fish Lab of Marsh & Associates LLC.
  7. ↑ Ossenbrügger, Holgen (2010). "Distribution patterns of pelagic gastropods at the Cape Verde Islands" (PDF). Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pierrot-Bults, Annelies & Peijnenburg, K. (2015). Pteropods. Encyclopedia of marine geosciences. 1-10.
  9. ↑ Spoel, S. van der; Newman, L.; Estep, K. (n.d.). "Family Notobranchaeidae". Marine Species Identification Portal. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  10. 1 2 3 Lemus, E., Sanvicente-Añorve, L., Hermoso-Salazar, M, Flores-Coto, C. (2014). "The holoplanktonic Mollusca from the southern Gulf of Mexico Part 2: pteropods" (PDF). Cahiers de Biologie Marine. 55: 241–258 – via ResearchGate.
  11. ↑ Ballesteros, M.; Madrenas, E.; Pontes, M. (n.d.). "Gymnosomata". OPK Opistobranquis. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  • Bouchet, P., Rocroi, J.-P. (2005). Classification and nomenclature of gastropod families. Malacologia. 47(1-2): 1-397 ISBN 3-925919-72-4.
  • MolluscaBase (2019). MolluscaBase. Notobranchaeidae Pelseneer, 1886. Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=23080 on 2019-04-16
  • Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca. in: Costello, M. J. et al. (eds), European Register of Marine Species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Patrimoines Naturels. 50: 180-213
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