The name comes from the Latin word for ââ¬Ënakedââ¬â¢ and the Greek word for ââ¬Ëgillsââ¬â¢. They are molluscs in the class of gastropods. A nudibranch is basically a sea slug, but there are some species of sea slugs that are not nudibranchs. The term ââ¬Ësea slugââ¬â¢ may sound unpleasant and boring, but these creatures have quite a following of fans, many of whom go diving in search for new or particular species. In general, they are about the size of your thumb, but many are a lot smaller and some measure up to 60cm. in length. Most are colourful, but some are very bland in appearance. Only a few can swim, while most move across the seabed or coral very very slowly. They fall into two main groups, which are dorid nudibranchs and eolid nudibranchs. The main difference between these two groups is their appearance and which body parts they use to breathe. There are more than 3,000 different species of currently-identified nudibranchs. New species are recognised by science every year.
|
