Microscopy Thread

[EnterName]

Cat Nudibranch
(Vayssierea sp.)​

I received some new frags today and during the coral dip I noticed a tiny red spot on an acropora frag. I was really worried to have found an Acropora Red Bug (Tegastes acroporanus) or Red Planaria (Convolutriloba retrogemma), but apparently it's a little sea slug.

(Recorded with Smartphone camera and macro lens)
Click here if you can't see the video: https://www.reef2reef.com/data/vide...f329bfdd59df99e72beb9c3f8.mp4?hash=0p4y0SHxK0
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Common Name	Cat Nudibranch
Classification	Vayssierea sp. possibly Vayssierea felis?
Verdict	Neutral - Harmless
Size	≤ 6mm (0.24")
Found	?
Rarity	Rare

(Here is a bright-field recording of the slug. Unfortunately the depth of field is very limited)
Click here if you can't see the video: https://www.reef2reef.com/data/vide...3bc9587417fba62ad5e6570cd.mp4?hash=a3TMGmU0qa
​

I assume it is a Cat Nudibranch (Vayssierea felis) which eats Spirorbis (see post #81), and Salmacina tubeworms. The only odd thing about this specimen is that I can only see one Rinophore (olfactorive organ)... Maybe I am completely missing something or it's just an oddity of this specific slug like a birth defect or an injury.

@ISpeakForTheSeas, there you have it. You said you liked being tagged, now you have to deal with the consequences

I wasn't sure about my suggested identification so I placed the slug into a beaker with some tank water and a few spirorbid worms. After not showing too much interest for like 5 hours it is sitting on one of the spirorbid shells now. This is giving me some confidence that it's indeed a Vayssierea species and I can safely add it to my filter sump.

 

[EnterName]

Tanaid?
(Order: Tanaidacea?)

(A quite bad macro shot of what I'm assuming to be a Tanaid just like in post #40, maybe 4mm/0.16" in length. As you might have noticed I often come back to older posts to add images or replace bad recordings. I hopefully will have the opportunity to do this here as well, but for now this little guy is back in my tank)​

Common Name	Tanaid?
Classification	Order: Tanaidacea?
Verdict	Harmless
Size	≤ 6mm (0.24")
Found	Rockscape or buried in
Rarity	Common (in nearly all tanks, but often live hidden)

I got very lucky with the specimen today. It was really calm and just sat still in a single spot without moving, which made taking photos and videos easier.

(Head)

(Middle section)​

In contrast to many other crustaceans, Tanaids don't drift off as free-swimming larvae. This creates genetically isolated populations over time which might have contributed to the fact that there are so many localized species, and it might also be the reason why these guys manage to reproduce in tanks and don't simply end up in the skimmer as larvae.

(You can see the crustaceans equivalent of blood cells called "Hemocytes" flowing through its body)

(Middle section with clearly visible "heartbeat")
Click here if you can't see the video: https://www.reef2reef.com/data/vide...758f538acfa39c68906edcf35.mp4?hash=q6NFs_EKxV​