Also called the striped paper bubble, green-lined paper bubble, brown-lined paper bubble, and rose petal bubble shell.
Shell external, delicate and oval, bearing numerous spiral brown lines. Foot large and pink with thin wavy margin edged in blue.
About 30 mm in length.
A specialized predator found on protected sandflats or in rock pools. Feeds exclusively on burrowing polychaetes, mussels and other slugs.
Two Oceans: A Guide to the Marine Life of Southern Africa (2007).
Anatomy & Morphology
Although the possession of a shell is considered a primitive feature in sea slugs, the shell of Hydatina physis is greatly modified, by being inflated and thin-walled. As the large animal cannot retract entirely into the shell, it lacks the protective operculum on which thick-shelled gastropod species rely upon to seal themselves off inside their shell upon any danger.
Watching a specimen of Hydatina physis in the open, hunting, is a delight !
For more information on this species, you can visit the following webpage : https://nudibranchdomain.org/product/hydatina-physis/
F*CK FISH 