Two fiery nudibranchs from Algoa Bay. Photos Glen Jacoby
Two fiery nudibranchs on their egg cases. Photo Guido Zsilavecz
Johan Swanepoel and Glen Jacoby were diving in Algoa Bay and came across this small nudibranch. It is a juvenile fiery nudibranch Okenia amoenula. In Cape Town these are quite common, especially in False Bay, and are usually seen in small groups together with their egg cases, on rock reef walls. The colour is slightly variable in its intensity, with some specimens a much brighter, deeper orange and yellow than others.
For more details on this species, see "Nudibranchs of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay" available directly from SURG or better dive and book stores in Cape Town.
Nudibranchs of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay, G Zsilavecz, 2007
Nudibranchs of Southern Africa - a guide to the opisthobranch molluscs of southern Africa, T. Gosliner, 1987