Species Aplysia argus Rüppell & Leuckart, 1830

Museums

Regional Maps

• Aplysia argus Rüppell E. & Leuckart F.S. 1828 [1828-1830]. Mollusca [in] Atlas zu des Reise im Nordlichen Afrika von Eduard Rüppell. 1. Abth. Zoologie. 5. Neue wirbellose Thiere des Rothen Meers. Frankfurt : H.L. Brönner pp. 1-22, pl. 1-12 [1828], pp. 23-47 [probably 1830]. [23, Plate 7, Figure 1].
• Aplysia angasi Sowerby, G.B. II 1869. Monograph of the genus Aplysia. pls 1-10 in Reeve, L. (ed.). Conchologia Iconica. London : L. Reeve Vol. 17 pls 1-10 (plates only).

  Type data:

   Status unknown, Details not provided, Port Jackson, New South Wales, Australia.
• Aplysia annulifera Thiele, J. 1930. Gastropoda und Bivalvia. pp. 561-596, 1 pl. (pl. 4) in Michaelsen, W. & Hartmeyer, R. Die Fauna Südwest-Australiens. Ergebnisse der Hamburger südwest-australischen Forschungsreise 1905 herausgegeben von Prof. Dr. W. Michaelson und Prof. Dr. R. Hartmeyer. Jena : Gustav Fischer Vol. 5(8).

 

Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy

• Nimbs, M.J., Willan, R.C. & Smith, S.D.A. 2017a. Is Port Stephens, eastern Australia, a global hotspot for biodiversity of Aplysiidae (Gastropoda: Heterobranchia)? Molluscan Research 37(1): 45-65 [49, Fig. 2A]

 

Introduction

Genetic and morphological analyses conducted by Alexander & Valdés (2013) revealed that Caribbean specimens of Aplysia dactylomela were distinct from specimens from the Indo-Pacific reported as the same species. As the name A. dactylomela was proposed for Atlantic specimens, Aplysia argus (as the oldest available name) was reinstated for Indo-Pacific specimens previously identified as A. dactylomela.

 

Distribution

States

New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia

Extra Distribution Information

Distribution modified following maps presented in Nimbs et al. (2017b)

IBRA and IMCRA regions

IMCRA

Tasmania Province (10), Lord Howe Province (14), Norfolk Island Province (21), Northwest Shelf Transition (26), Northwest Shelf Province (27), Central Western Shelf Transition (28), Central Western Shelf Province (29), Southwest Shelf Transition (30), Southwest Shelf Province (31), Great Australian Bight Shelf Transition (32), Spencer Gulf Shelf Province (33), Western Bass Strait Shelf Transition (34), Bass Strait Shelf Province (35), Southeast Shelf Transition (37), Central Eastern Shelf Province (38), Central Eastern Shelf Transition (39), Northeast Shelf Province (40), Northeast Shelf Transition (41)

Distribution References

General References

Alexander, J. & Valdés, Á. 2013. The ring doesn't mean a thing: Molecular data suggest a new taxonomy for two Pacific species of sea hares (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia, Aplysiidae). Pacific Science 67(2): 283–294

Nimbs, M.J., Hutton, I., Davis, T.R., Larkin, M.F. & Smith, S.D.A. 2020. The heterobranch sea slugs of Lord Howe Island, NSW, Australia (Mollusca: Gastropoda). Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria 132: 12–41 [14]

 

History of changes

Published	As part of group	Action Date	Action Type	Compiler(s)
15-Sep-2023	APLYSIOIDEA Lamarck, 1809	07-Aug-2024	MODIFIED
	HETEROBRANCHIA	29-May-2018	ADDED	Ingo Burghardt (AM) Ms Anouk Mututantri