Geitodoris planata is a species of sea slug or dorid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Discodorididae.
It was originally described from Europe. Caribbean populations are morphologically similar but almost certainly distinct.[5] Alvim & Pimenta (2013)[6] regarded Caribbean animals as Geitodoris pusae (Er. Marcus, 1955), but no molecular studies have been conducted to compare animals from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.[5] Further research is necessary to clarify the status of this species.[5]
Distribution of Geitodoris planata includes Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, North Sea, Western Atlantic: New Jersey, St. Lucia and Panama.[5]
The type locality is "Lamlash Bay", Isle of Arran, Scotland.[1]
The body is oval.[5] Mantle is rigid.[5] Dorsum is covered by rounded, stalked tubercles.[5] Background color is grayish-brown with some dark brown irregular patches.[5] The color fades and becomes more translucent towards the mantle margin.[5] Larger tubercles surrounded with opaque white pigment.[5] Rhinophores and gill are usually the same color as the dorsum with white tips.[5] The maximum recorded body length is 65 mm.[7][5]
Minimum recorded depth is 91 m.[7] Maximum recorded depth is 267 m.[7] But this species apparently live also in more shallow water.[5] It was found in coral rubble in a predominately sea grass habitat in Panama.[5]
Its prey include sponges Hemimycale columella and Hymeniacidon perlevis.[8]
This article incorporates Creative Commons (CC-BY-4.0) text from the reference[5]
Geitodoris planata is a species of sea slug or dorid nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Discodorididae.