Kunie's Chromodoris

Kunie’s Chromodoris
Goniobranchus Kuniei

Creamy yellow spreads across the broad mantle of this nudibranch, crowded with purple-ringed spots that seem to ripple outward from the center. Three deep violet bands circle the edge, giving the body a bold, layered border, while yellow-tipped rhinophores and pale gills rise from the middle of all that color. As it crawls, the wide mantle lifts and falls in a slow rhythm, making the whole animal seem to breathe with its own flowing fringe.

• Size: Up to around 60 mm
• Range: Indo-West Pacific; from the eastern Indian Ocean through Indonesia, the Philippines, New Caledonia, Fiji, Australia and the western Pacific
• Habitat / Depth: Coral and rocky reefs, lagoons and sandy rubble areas, typically from around 5–40 m
• Diet: Feeds on sponges, including Chelonaplysilla violacea