Cymbulia peroni De Blainville, 1818c morpha minor Van der Spoel, 1976c
Overview
This is a shell-less pteropod with a large gelatinous, slipper-like pseudoconch, 4.2 cm long. The wings are disc-shaped and the visceral mass forms a dark nucleus embedded in the perfectly transparent pseudoconch. The pseudoconch is blunt and covered with cusps. It is an elegant swimmer that feeds on microplankton by means of a mucus web. It is found in the Indian and Atlantic Ocean and occasionally in the Mediterranean. (Cymbulia p. minor).
Taxonomic Description
The pseudoconch is smaller than in the morph peroni and shows a less regularly curved underside. The sides have only one or two rows of spines instead of three. The spines are small, also near the aperture, and the asymmetrical development of spines along the aperture is absent. The two knobs at the dorsal side of the pseudoconch cavity are small, these are broadly based in minor and large, narrowly based, usually with two or more spines, in peroni. Wings and visceral mass are as in the morph peroni.
Pseudoconch with a maximum length of 42 mm.
Juveniles
A special description is not available.
Reproduction
This form is a protandric hermaphrodite.
Ecology
This form is phytophagous.
Distribution
This form is found in Atlantic and SW-Indian Oceans, see the Cymbulia p. minor map.
Types
Cymbulia peroni morpha minor Van der Spoel, 1976: 39, fig. 19.
Holotype: ZMAN one pseudoconch (alcohol collection) Paratypes: ZMAN 26 pseudoconchs and 23 soft bodies (alcohol collection).
Type locality: 23°26'S 3°56'E. Coll.: CDAE stat. 3980ix.