Marine Species Identification Portal : Lomanotus genei

Vérany, 1846

Description:
Adult specimens may reach 94 mm in length; there is considerable variation in the coloration of the body. The pallial cerata take the form in juveniles (up to 3 mm) of sparse papillae along the pallial rim, but in the adult condition this rim is enlarged to form a sinuous frill on either side of the body. The cerata are vase-shaped; the largest are often curved at the tip and they may bear gill-like wrinkles (L. genei-variations).

Habitat:
This species feeds upon the hydroid Nemertesia ramosa in coastal waters down to 90 m. If disturbed, it may swim clumsily, by lateral contractions of the whole body.

Distribution:
First recorded in the Gulf of Genoa, this unusual species bas been found in the Bay of Naples, the French coast between Nice and Banyuls-sur-Mer, and in localities in Brittany and Normandy, as well as all around the British Isles. In the North Sea restricted to the Shetland area (Distr. L. genei).

Lomanotus genei