Glossodoris bonwanga Matsuda & Gosliner 2018, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Matsuda, Shayle B.
name: Gosliner, Terrence M.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Mollusca
Gastropoda
Nudibranchia
Chromodorididae
Glossodoris
Glossodoris bonwanga

description: Glossodoris bonwanga, Matsuda & Gosliner sp. nov.
Figures (2C, 6A, 7A–D, 8A–B)
Glossodoris cincta (Bergh 1888), Rudman 1986 in part, misidentification: 149, figs, 30B, 32, 33C.
Glossodoris sp. 2 Gosliner 1987: 84, middle photo.
Glossodoris sp. 5 Gosliner et al. 2008: 236, upper photo.
Glossodoris sp. 3 Gosliner et al. 2015: 236, upper right photo.
Glossodoris sp. B Matsuda & Gosliner 2017.
Type Material. Holotype: CASIZ-194018, one specimen 8 mm preserved (hardened), Madagascar, “Pointe Evatra, crique fond rocheux et gazon d’algues”, 30 April–6 May 2010, South Madagascar Expedition, 3–8 meters, orig. fixative 95% EtOH. Tissue sampled (foot) for molecular analysis by Matsuda & Gosliner (2017), GenBank: KT600695 (COI).
Paratypes: CASIZ-173433, one specimen, dissected, 13.5 mm preserved, Madagascar, Iles Radama, Nosy Valiha, coll: S. Fahey, 14 Oct 2005, CAS-WCS Radama Islands Expedition, 16 meters, orig. fixative 95% EtOH. This specimen was tissue sampled (foot) for molecular analysis by Johnson & Gosliner (2012) and reanalyzed by Matsuda & Gosliner (2017). SAM A35516 (South African Museum), one specimen, dissected, 12 mm preserved, South Africa Kwazulu Natal, Sodwana Bay, 2 mile Reef KZ11, coll: T.M. Gosliner, 13 May 1981, orig. fixative 95% EtOH.
Etymology. The first specimen of Glossodoris bonwanga was collected in South Africa, and the species is named after the Zulu word for “unseen”, owing to its confusion with G. cincta (Rudman 1986).
Distribution. Madagascar to the northeast coast of South Africa.
External morphology. Glossodoris bonwanga has an elongate oval-shaped mantle that is elevated from the sides of the body above the foot (Fig. 6A). The mantle edge is made up of a series of permanent primary undulations with additional semi-permanent folding. There is one large distinguished pair of primary folds midway on the mantle. The mantle and foot are a light brick red color that is covered in a dusting of white speckles denser at the edge of the mantle giving the nudibranch an overall lighter appearance. A bright yellow band followed by a thinner black band (Fig. 2C) surrounds the outermost edge of the mantle and foot. On the inner edge of the black band there appears to be a fine band of a translucent white. The gill forms an arc around the anus and the 16–24 unipinnate branches are shorter in length at both ends of the arc to form two smaller spirals. The branches are a light brick red and cream color with two thin black lines that run along the edge beginning midway up and joining at the tip. The rhinophores have about 24 lamellae and are the same color as the body or darker. They are covered with opaque white speckling arranged in rows along the lamellae and have black tips. Posterior to each rhinophore are two spots on the mantle that do not have white spots and therefore appear as dark circles, this becomes more evident once the specimen is preserved. The genital pore is located on the right side of the body, under the mantle behind the rhinophores.
Internal Anatomy. Radular structure. (Fig. 7A–D). The radular ribbon is long and wide (Fig. 7D), characteristic of the genus. The rachidian tooth (Fig. 7A) is elongate and triangular at the tip and approximately two-thirds the length of the innermost lateral tooth. The innermost lateral tooth has a long narrow central cusp that is slightly curved with approximately seven denticles on the outer edge and a well-defined ridge with no denticles on the inner edge. The inner lateral teeth have a similar shape with a slightly longer cusp and no inner ridge or denticles. They have a well-defined peen (an extension on top of the primary cusp similar to the ball peen of a hammer), and approximately 5–6 small denticles on the outer edge of the inner lateral teeth and 10–12 on the outer edge of the mid-laterals (Fig. 7B). The outer lateral teeth (Fig. 7C) are reduced in size and have no peen or denticles. The scanning electron micrograph of radula had been made twenty years ago and no image was available of the entire ribbon, but from the SEM images and the remainder of the radular ribbon mounted on a microscope slide, we estimate the radular formula to be approximately 41.1.41.
Reproductive system (Figs. 8A, B). The vagina is long and coiled and branches off from the short receptaculum seminis duct just below the bursa copulatrix and receptaculum seminis. The penial bulb is thick and long with folds before joining the muscular vas deferens and prostate gland, both of which are long and convoluted. The prostate joins the ampulla before entering the albumen gland.
Remarks. The color pattern on Glossodoris bonwanga appears similar to Rudman’s description of the Glossodoris cincta East African color form, except for the lack of a “diffuse yellow tinge surrounding the central region of the mantle” (Rudman 1986), but this could certainly be due to individual variation. The black and bright yellow marginal bands distinguish this species from the other cryptic and pseudocryptic G. cincta species, which each have three easily distinguishable marginal bands. However, in his description, Rudman (1986) also identifies a transparent band on the outer edge of the black band. The white speckling that blankets the mantle and foot give it a smoother appearance and each dot is distinguishable, also separating it from members of the other clades within the G. cincta complex. The striking difference between the light coloration of the stalk of the lamellae on the gills against the black-bordered tips is also a defining characteristic.
The presence of an outer black marginal band with an inner broad yellow band clearly distinguishes G. bonwanga from all other members of the G. cincta clade. Additionally, it is the only member of this clade with a conspicuous black line along the rachis of each branchial rachis.
There are only subtle differences in the radular structure between all the species in the G. cincta complex. The lack of denticles on the inner edge of the first lateral tooth sets G. bonwanga apart from other members of this complex. Its denticles are also more well-defined. The rachidian tooth is pointed, which is similar to Glossodoris acosti and G. sp. cf. cincta, but not Glossodoris andersonae. The jaw rodlets for members of all four clades are similarly unicuspid and curved. The radula is similar to what Rudman (1986) described, however he noted denticles on the inner edge of the first lateral tooth, whereas here there were none. The penis of G. bonwanga is far less convoluted than in other members of this species complex (Fig. 8) and curves simply over the female glands prior to becoming a highly convoluted ejaculatory vas deferens (Fig. 8A, B). This difference is also evident in the figure of the Tanzanian specimen illustrated by Rudman (1986: fig. 33C).
Molecular data place Glossodoris bonwanga as sister to the rest of the species in the Glossodoris cincta species complex (Matsuda & Gosliner 2017) and the ABGD analysis clearly places this lineage as a distinct species (Fig. 5). The intraspecific p-distance is 2, whereas a p-distance of ±9 separates this species from G. andersonae sp. nov., G. acosti sp. nov., and G. sp. cf. cincta (Matsuda & Gosliner 2017).
description: Published as part of Matsuda, Shayle B. & Gosliner, Terrence M., 2018, Glossing over cryptic species: Descriptions of four new species of Glossodoris and three new species of Doriprismatica (Nudibranchia: Chromodorididae), pp. 501-529 in Zootaxa 4444 (5) on pages 508-511, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4444.5.1, http://zenodo.org/record/1437224