Miamira magnifica Eliot, 1910

Yonow, Nathalie, 2018, Red Sea Opisthobranchia 5: new species and new records of chromodorids from the Red Sea (Heterobranchia, Nudibranchia, Chromodorididae), ZooKeys 770, pp. 9-42 : 24-27

Miamira magnifica Eliot, 1910 Figure 6 , Plate 9

Miamira magnifica Eliot, 1910: 432, pl. 25 figs 10, 11 (Seychelles); Yonow 1994: 123 (Maldive Islands); Yonow 2008: 61, 206 (Red Sea); Tibiriçá et al. 2017: 40, fig. 11G, H (Mozambique).

Material.

Marine Biological Laboratory , Eilat, Israel, 09 Aug 1983, 10 m depth, one specimen 31 × 16 mm (preserved), leg. and photographs J Dafni .

Description/remarks.

There is so much confusion surrounding this species that the Red Sea specimen is here described and illustrated in detail to enable clear recognition. As succinctly stated by Rudman (2007), a review of the genus by Valdés and Gosliner (1999) which synonymised several genera actually omitted two crucial species, and so the confusion continues. In concurrence with Rudman, Miamira magnifica is here reported as having an Indian Ocean distribution, including the Red Sea (also in Yonow 2008: 206). This is a correction of Yonow (1994) who stated that it had an Indo-West Pacific distribution because flavicostata from Australia and Japan had been included as a possible synonym.

Despite much searching, this remains the only specimen record of Miamira from the Red Sea. The specimen was examined and drawn by the author when it was moribund: it was pale green with white nodules, each of which were encircled by two or three blue rings (Plate 9 ); the central two nodules were the largest. The shape of this central green area was like a cross of Lorraine, a longitudinal central line with two crossbars. Outside this region, the mantle was white with raised orange spots, which also were present on the slightly raised tubercles covering the sides and white hyponotum of the specimen. The demarcation between the mantle and the sides was clearly marked by orange dots. The shape of the mantle was very regular and its texture firm, the foot extended beyond it.

The preserved specimen retains much of the original shape, albeit somewhat contracted, and the spots are clearly visible (Figure 6A ). The reproductive system of the single specimen was developed when it was collected in the summer.

The radula comprises at least 80 rows of simply hooked teeth; there are approximately 100 teeth in a row. There is no rhachidian and the last few teeth in each row are greatly reduced in size and stacked together (Figure 6B, C ). This compares well with those of a Maldives specimen measuring a very similar 30 mm having a radular formula of 102 × approx. 90.0.90 ( Yonow 1994).

The jaws are simple rodlets with pointed tips and a slight curve (Figure 6D ).

Distribution.

Northern Red Sea, tropical western Indian Ocean ( Yonow 1994, Tibiriçá et al. 2017, http://www.seaslugforum.net/showall/ceramagn).

Figures

Figure 6. Miamira magnifica Eliot, 1910 A ventral view of whole specimen B midline area from the anterior portion of the radula C lateral teeth from the anterior section of the radula D jaw rodlets.

Plate 9. Miamira magnifica Eliot, 1910, photograph J Dafni.