Pleurobranchidae

The Pleurobranchidae are a taxonomic family of sea slugs, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Pleurobranchomorpha.

Pleurobranchidae
Berthella martensi, with lateral gill visible
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Mollusca
Class:	Gastropoda
(unranked):	clade Heterobranchia clade Euthyneura clade Nudipleura clade Pleurobranchomorpha
Superfamily:	Pleurobranchoidea Gray, 1827
Family:	Pleurobranchidae Gray, 1827 [1]
Type genus
Pleurobranchus Cuvier, 1804
Subfamilies
Pleurobranchinae Gray, 1827 Tribe Pleurobranchini Gray, 1827 Tribe Bathyberthellini Garcia, Troncoso, Cervera & Garcia-Gomez, 1996 Tribe Berthellini Burn, 1962 Pleurobranchaeinae Pilsbry, 1896
Synonyms[2]
Bathyberthellini Garcia, Troncoso, Cervera & Garcia-Gomez, 1996 Berthellinae Burn, 1962 Pleurobranchinae Gray, 1827

Pleurobranchaea meckelii

Close-up on the lateral gill of a pleurobranch sea slug (Berthella martensi)

Characteristics

Species in the family Pleurobranchidae have a prominent mantle and an internal shell that becomes reduced or is lost completely in adults.^[3] Some adult species have been seen feeding on ascidians. Larval pleurobranchids can be planktotrophic (feeding on plankton), lecithotrophic (deriving nutrition from yolk), or direct developing.

Like all Pleurobranchomorpha, they breathe through an external gill, located on the right side (contrary to nudibranchs who have it on the back), just after the genital organ.

Many species produce secretions from their rich glandular mantle as a chemical defense against predators.^[4] Even the production of sulfuric acid has been reported.^[5]

Taxonomy

Until 2005, this family was placed in the suborder Notaspidea. However, in the taxonomy of Bouchet & Rocroi (2005), the family Pleurobranchidae was placed in the superfamily Pleurobranchoidea, the only family belonging to the subclade Pleurobranchomorpha (sister to the subclade Nudibranchia), part of the clade Nudipleura.

Subfamily Pleurobranchinae

• Bathyberthella
  • Bathyberthella antarctica Willan and Bertsch, 1987 ^[6]
• Berthella de Blainville, 1824
  • Berthella africana Pruvot-Fol, 1953 ^[7]
  • Berthella agassizi MacFarland, 1909
  • Berthella americana A. E. Verrill, 1885
  • Berthella aurantiaca Risso, 1818
  • Berthella caledonica Dall, 1900
  • Berthella californica Dall, 1900 California sidegill slug
  • Berthella canariensis Cervera, J.L., T.M. Gosliner, J.C. García-Gómez & J. Ortea, 2000
  • Berthella elongata Cantraine, 1835
  • Berthella martensi Pilsbry, 1896
  • Berthella medietas R. Burn, 1962
  • Berthella ocellata delle Chiaje, 1830
  • Berthella ornata T.F. Cheeseman, 1878
  • Berthella patagonica d'Orbigny, 1837
  • Berthella platei Bergh, 1898 ^[8]
  • Berthella plumula Montagu, 1803
  • Berthella sideralis Lovén, 1846
  • Berthella stellata Risso, 1826
  • Berthella strongi MacFarland, 1966
  • Berthella tamiu Ev. Marcus, 1984 ^[9]
  • Berthella tupala Er. Marcus, 1957
• Berthellina Gardiner, 1936
  • Berthellina amarillus Mattox, 1953
  • Berthellina americanus Verrill, 1885
  • Berthellina circularis Mörch, 1863
  • Berthellina citrina Rüppell & Leuckart, 1828 (synonym of Gymnotoplax citrina Er. Marcus, 1957 )
  • Berthellina delicata W.H. Pease, 1861
  • Berthellina edwardsii Vayssière, 1897
  • Berthellina engeli Gardiner, 1936
  • Berthellina granulata (Krauss, 1848)
  • Berthellina ilisima Marcus, Er. & Ev. Marcus, 1967
  • Berthellina quadridens Mörch, 1863 (junior synonym of Gymnotoplax quadridens)^[10]
• Boreoberthella Martynov & Schrödl, 2009
• Bouvieria Vayssière, 1896 : synonym of Berthella Blainville, 1824
  • Bouvieria auriantiaca Risso, 1813
  • Bouvieria ocellata S. delle Chiaje, 1828
  • Bouvieria perforata Philippi, 1844
• Pleurehdera Ev. Marcus & Er. Marcus, 1970
  • Pleurehdera haraldi Ev. Marcus & Er. Marcus, 1970
• Pleurobranchus Cuvier, 1805
• Tomthompsonia
  • Tomthompsonia antarctica Thiele, 1912

• 
  Berthella ornata
• 
  Berthellina granulata
• 
  Pleurobranchus albiguttatus