Meeting Abstract
Sacoglossan sea slugs have a well-known ability to sequester photosynthetically active chloroplasts from their algal food source within specific digestive cells (= kleptoplasty). Many species also utilize the photosynthetic products from the stored chloroplasts. This phenomenon has been examined in several sacoglossan species, but detailed life histories are only known for a few large and charismatic slugs. We have recently begun studying a comparatively smaller-sized, enigmatic kleptoplastic slug from seagrass/rhizophytic algal beds in Tarpon Springs, FL, as well as the Florida Keys, which consumes the algae Penicillus capitatus and Penicillus lamourouxii. We initially identified the slug as Elysia patina (Marcus 1980) based on a redescription by Ortea et al. (2005) (Vieraea 33: 495-514). However, we now report that Ortea et al.’s (2005) classification of E. patina was incorrect based on the following: 1) dorsal surface vascular morphology, 2) scanning electron microscopic examination of radular teeth, and 3) careful comparisons of Ortea et al.’s (2005) anatomical descriptions with the original literature. In fact, we found that Ortea et al.’s (2005) description of E. patina exactly matches the original descriptions of Elysia papillosa (Verrill 1901) as well as the anatomy of the Tarpon Springs slugs. Therefore, the Tarpon Springs slugs should be identified as E. papillosa. In turn, the redescriptions of both E. patina and E. papillosa in Ortea et al. (2005) are incorrect and neither description should be used.
