Sea Hares
Aplysia californica, a typical sea hare
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Mollusca Class: Gastropoda Subclass: Orthogastropoda Superorder: Heterobranchia Order: Opisthobranchia Suborder: Anaspidea (=Aplysiomorpha) P. The California sea slug ( Aplysia californica) is also commonly called the California sea hare, and this is because the shape of all Aplysia species Molluscs are animals belonging to the phylum Mollusca. There are around 250000 extant Species within the phylum with an estimated 70000 The class Gastropoda or the gastropods, also previously known as gasteropods, or univalves, and more commonly known as Snails Orthogastropoda is one of two major Taxonomic groupings of snails and slugs an extremely large Subclass within the huge class Gastropoda. Heterobranchia, the heterobranchs, (meaning "different-gilled snails" is a Taxonomic Superorder of sea Snails marine An opisthobranch (ō-pĭsʹthə-brăngk is any member of the very large and diverse group of rather specialized highly evolved marine slugs and snails ( marine Gastropod Fischer, 1883
Families
Superfamily Akeroidea Akeridae Superfamily Aplysioidea Aplysiidae

Sea hares (Aplysia species and related genera) are very large sea slugs with a soft internal shell made of protein. In Biological classification, family ( Latin Akeridae is a small Taxonomic family of sea Snails marine Gastropod Molluscs belonging to the Superfamily Akeridae is a small Taxonomic family of sea Snails marine Gastropod Molluscs belonging to the Superfamily Slug is a common non-scientific word which is often applied to any Gastropod mollusk whatsoever that has a very reduced shell a small internal shell These are marine gastropod molluscs in the family Aplysiidae and superfamily Aplysioidea. Marine is an Umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the Sea or Ocean, such as Marine biology, Marine The class Gastropoda or the gastropods, also previously known as gasteropods, or univalves, and more commonly known as Snails Molluscs are animals belonging to the phylum Mollusca. There are around 250000 extant Species within the phylum with an estimated 70000

The common name "sea hare" derives from their rounded shape and from the two long rhinophores which project upwards from their heads, and which somewhat resemble rabbit ears. For Wikipedia aspects see WikipediaNaming conventions (common names, WikipediaNaming conventions, and WikipediaStyle manual. Rabbits are small Mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world

The original author P. Fischer described this taxon at unspecified rank above family ^[1]. In 1925 Thiele established this taxon as a suborder. For the 19th century chemist by the same name see Johannes Thiele (chemist. Since the taxon Anaspidea was not based on an existing genus, this name is no longer available. It has been replaced in the new Taxonomy of the Gastropoda (Bouchet & Rocroi, 2005) by the clade Aplysiomorpha . The new Gastropod Taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005 (in collaboration with J A clade is a taxonomic group comprising a single Common ancestor and all the descendants of that ancestor

The scientific name for the order in which they are classified, the (Anaspidea), is derived from the Greek for "without a shield" and refers to the lack of the characteristic head shield found in the cephalaspidean opisthobranchs. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Many anaspideans have only a thin, internal and much-reduced shell with a small mantle cavity; some have no shell at all. The mantle is an important part of the anatomy of Molluscs It is the dorsal body wall which covers the visceral mass All species have a radula and gizzard plates. The radula is a toothed Chitinous ribbon typically used for scraping cutting and chewing food before it enters the Esophagus.

Description

Sea hares are mostly rather large, bulky creatures. The biggest species, Aplysia vaccaria, can reach a length of 75 cm and a weight of 2 kg and is arguably the largest gastropod species.

Sea hares have soft bodies with an internal shell, and like all opistobranch mollusks they are hermaphroditic. A hermaphrodite is an organism having both male and female reproductive organs

Life habits

Sea Hare at Big Island of Hawaii

Sea hares are herbivore/herbivorous, and are typically found on seaweed in shallow water. It seems to be the case that some young sea hares are capable of burrowing in soft sediment leaving only their rhinophores and mantle opening showing. Sea hares have an extremely good sense of smell. They can follow even the faintest scent using their rhinophores, which are extremely sensitive chemoreceptors. A rhinophore is one of a pair of club-shaped structures which are the most prominent part of the external head anatomy of a group of sea Slugs marine Gastropod

Their color corresponds with the color of the seaweed they eat: red sea hares have been feeding on red seaweed. This camouflages them from predators. Camouflage is a method of cryptic or concealing coloration that allows an otherwise visible Organism

When disturbed, a sea hare can release ink from its ink glands, providing a potent deterrent to predators. This release acts as a smoke screen, while at the same time, adversely affecting the smell sensors of their predators. In a small environment, this ink could be toxic to the inhabitants. The color of the ink is white, purple or reddish, depending on the color of the pigments in their seaweed food source. Their skin contains a similar toxin that renders sea hares largely inedible to many predators.

Human use

Aplysia californica is a typical example of a sea hare, and is noteworthy for its usefulness in studies of neurobiology because of the unusually large size of the axons that are a part of its nerve cells. The California sea slug ( Aplysia californica) is also commonly called the California sea hare, and this is because the shape of all Aplysia species Neurobiology is the study of cells of the Nervous system and the organization of these cells into functional circuits that process information and mediate behavior

Notes

References

• http://www.seaslugforum.net/display.cfm?id=4210
• http://www.cabrilloaq.org/critter1.html