Melanochlamys is a genus of headshield slugs in the family Aglajidae. Despite the appearance of its species, this genus must not be confused with nudibranchs.
This genus was first described by Cheeseman in 1881 but later malacologists considered it a junior synonym of Aglaja <small>Renier, 1807</small>, until the genus was reinstated by Rudman in 1972.
It differs from the other genera in Aglajidae by its external cylindrical body form with small parapodia, the shape of its small, curved and strongly calcified shell, its alimentary canal with a rigid, non-eversible buccal bulb, and the reproductive system with a short duct to the exogenous ( = originating from the outside) sperm sac and a characteristic penis.
Species
According to the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS), this genus contains the following accepted names:
- Melanochlamys algirae <small>(Adams A. in Sowerby G.B. II, 1850)</small>
- Melanochlamys aquilina <small>S.-Q. Zhang, M.-J. Liao, Y.-G. Wang, M. Kong & B. Li, 2020</small>
- Melanochlamys barryi <small>Gosliner, 1990</small>
- Melanochlamys chabanae <small>Breslau, Valdés & Chichvarkhin, 2016</small>
- Melanochlamys cylindrica <small>Cheeseman, 1881</small>
- Melanochlamys diomedea <small>(Bergh, 1893)</small>
- Melanochlamys droupadi <small>(Tudu & Sajan, 2024)</small>
- Melanochlamys ezoensis <small>(Baba, 1957)</small>
- Melanochlamys fukudai <small>Cooke, Hanson, Hirano, Ornelas-Gatdula, Gosliner, Chernyshev & Valdés, 2014</small>
- Melanochlamys handrecki <small>Burn, 2010</small>
- Melanochlamys kohi <small>Cooke, Hanson, Hirano, Ornelas-Gatdula, Gosliner, Chernyshev & Valdés, 2014</small>
- Melanochlamys lorrainae <small>(Rudman, 1968)</small>
- Melanochlamys maderensis <small>(Watson, 1897)</small>
- Melanochlamys miqueli <small>(Pelorce, Horst & Hoarau, 2013)</small>
- Melanochlamys papillata <small>Gosliner, 1990</small>
- Melanochlamys queritor <small>(Burn, 1957)</small>
- Melanochlamys wildpretii <small>Ortea, Bacallado & Moro, 2003</small>
Species brought into synonymy :
- Melanochlamys depicta <small>(Renier, 1807)</small>: synonym of Philinopsis depicta <small>(Renier, 1807)</small>
- Melanochlamys dubia <small>(O'Donoghue, 1929)</small>: synonym of Philinopsis dubia <small>(O'Donoghue, 1929)</small>
- Melanochlamys nana <small>(Steinberg & Jones, 1960)</small>: synonym of Melanochlamys diomedea <small>(Bergh, 1894)</small>
- Melanochlamys seurati <small>(Vayssière, 1926)</small>: synonym of Melanochlamys algirae <small>(Adams A. in Sowerby G.B. II, 1850)</small>
- Melanochlamys virgo <small>(Rudman, 1968)</small>: synonym of Philinopsis virgo <small>(Rudman, 1968)</small>
References
- Vaught, K.C. (1989). A classification of the living Mollusca. American Malacologists: Melbourne, FL (USA). . XII, 195 pp
- Gofas, S.; Le Renard, J.; Bouchet, P. (2001). Mollusca, in: Costello, M.J. et al. (Ed.) (2001). European register of marine species: a check-list of the marine species in Europe and a bibliography of guides to their identification. Collection Patrimoines Naturels, 50: pp. 180âÂÂ213
- Rolán E., 2005. Malacological Fauna From The Cape Verde Archipelago. Part 1, Polyplacophora and Gastropoda
- Pelorce J., Horst D. & Hoarau A., 2013, 2012. Une nouvelle espèce de la famille Aglajidae (Gastropoda: Opisthobranchia) des côtes de Méditerranée française. Iberus 31(2): 165-170
External links