Creature Feature - The Solar Powered Nudibranch

the solar powered nudibranch
Photo by Basil Bohn

A dash of divers descend down to shallow depths – word has spread that two solar powered nudibranch’s mating have been spotted on the house reef. Incredible creatures who receive the majority of their energy from the sun, the solar powered nudibranch harvests zooxanthellae algae from the soft coral upon which it sometimes feeds. In a fortunate feat of nature, a symbiotic relationship ensues. The photosynthetic zooxanthellae lives safely in the Solar Powered’s digestive system, in turn providing its host with energy from the sun. The long, flat, wide, and translucent leaf like cerata stemming from the nudibranch’s body are veined with exposed digestive system showing a speckling of zooxanthellae beneath a thin layer of translucent skin. The exposed zooxanthellea allow the solar powered nudibranch to receive the energy of the sun and give the solar powered a resemblance of a living moving flower.

The mating solar powered pair rest in the shadows of a TRACC built artificial reef (a teepee); reproduction organs planted in each other at opposite ends to form a circle of gently intertwined bodies in a fanciful mess of softly glowing cerata. They will stay in this circular act of creation until fertilized, laying up to 1 million eggs in a rose patterned spiral somewhere along the reef crest, giving life to a new generation of naturally fantastical creatures.

Nudi = naked, branch = gills, appropriate Latin for creatures making love in the oceanic sun.

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If you want to help with any marine conservation activity, please 
check our website http://tracc.org or e-mail info@tracc-borneo.org 

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More Marine conservation projects

Reef conservation would not be possible without generous financial support from

GEF /SGP for Malaysia who are helping our community activities and coralreefcare.com who generously provided materials to build the new reefs.

If visits to Tracc are not possible then please help with financial support and follow their projects on Facebook.

Creature Feature - Spanish Dancer Nudibranch Spotted on the House Reef

The Spanish Dancer
Photo by Basil Bohn 

Awesome and strange sea creatures consistently populate the TRACC artificial reefs, but sometimes we get especially lucky. This week we spotted a Spanish dancer nudibranch on the algae crusted “swim through “ of the house reef. This domed structure crafted from bent PVC pipes and covered with netting is popular with a variety of fantastic sea creatures including octopus, many many types of tropical fish, and tiny crabs and shrimps hiding between the netting and crevices in the cement and topsy-turvy bottle reefs, among many other creatures both resident and visitor. Yet, news of this giant nudibranch, roughly measured at 40 cm, created waves through camp, with divers running to gear up and see it for themselves.

Peng with the Spanish Dancer
Photo by Basil Bohn

The Spanish Dancer is the largest of the nudibranch family and gleams its namesake from its resemblance to traditional flamenco dancers. Its bright red, orange, and yellow coloration are reminiscent of the costumes of the traditional Spanish costume. When threatened, it swims through the ocean, twisting, flaring, and undulating its wide ruffled red and orange underside in imitation of the flamenco dance. As an added touch, these twirling sea slugs are simultaneous hermaphrodites. They can not self fertilize and do require a mate in order to lay eggs, but once they mate, they lay their toxic and brightly colored eggs in an outwardly spiraling ribbon around the coral, creating a rose shaped offering to the reef and further fulfilling their namesake.

The Underside of the Spanish Dancer
Photo by Basil Bohn

This sighting was a special experience for us all, including many of our instructors and Divemaster’s who have logged hundreds of dives. After the sighting and the combined hours spent observing this rare creature, the atmosphere at camp was filled with a communal feeling of the privilege and excitement of seeing such a rare creature. The feeling was intensified through sighting this Spanish Dancer on a TRACC built structure, providing the added satisfaction of seeing the conservation work TRACC has completed being populated and utilized by the ocean creatures we all love and strive to protect.

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