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| sea hares text index | photo index |
| Phylum Mollusca > Class Gastropoda > sea slugs > Order Anaspidea |
| Furry
sea hare Stylocheilus sp. Family Aplysiidae updated Aug 10 Where seen? This is another 'hairy' sea hare sometimes seen on some shores. Usually large numbers are seen during a visit and then none for a very long time. Features: 5-8cm. Body long with a long 'tail', with blue spots, fine lines and tiny projections that give it a furry look. The oral tentacles and rhinophores are about the same size. The oral tentacles usually lack large 'hairy' projections and has no flaps. The parapodia appears to be a hole in the centre of the body, rather than 'wings' or flaps as in other large sea hares. Usually well camouflaged and blends in perfectly with among seaweeds and seagrasses. Sometimes mistaken for the Hairy sea hare (Bursatella leachii). Both are hairy, but the long-tailed hairy sea hare has fine lines along the length of the body and its oral tentacles and rhinophores are more easily distinguished. Some 'hairy' snails also look like the hairy sea hare. More on how to tell apart hairy slugs and snails. What does it eat? It feeds on cyanobacteria formerly known as the filamentous blue-green algae. These sea hares are preyed upon by the Gymnodoris nudibranch. |
 St John's Island, Mar 05  Long narrow tail. |
 Spiky projections. |
 Purple or blue spots with fine lines running along the length of the body. |
 A pair of tentacles. |
Furry sea hares on Singapore shores
 Cyrene Reef, Jun 08 |
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 Cyrene Reef, Jun 08 |
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 Cyrene Reef, Feb 11 |
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 Changi, May 09 |
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Links
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IKAN-Unterwasserachiv, Frankfurt. 321 pp.
. IKAN-Unterwasserachiv. 723pp.|
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