WoRMS taxon details
Elysia ornata (Swainson, 1840)
139682 (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:139682)
accepted
Species
Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840 · unaccepted (original combination)
marine
(of Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840) Swainson, W. (1840). A treatise on malacology; or the natural classification of shells and shell-fish. Longman, London, viii + 419 pp., available online at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/33450
page(s): 250 [details]
page(s): 250 [details]
Type locality contained in Antilles
type locality contained in Antilles [from synonym] [view taxon] [details]
Taxonomy Other genetically distinct Indo-Pacific species have a similar external morphology and anatomy and have been placed in the...
Taxonomy Other genetically distinct Indo-Pacific species have a similar external morphology and anatomy and have been placed in the synonymy of Elysia ornata (Jensen 1992), thus it is important to determine the type locality of all available names for this species complex. No type locality was specified in the original description of Thallepus ornatus, but because Reverend Guilding [1797–1831] lived in St. Vincent and worked exclusively on Caribbean natural history (Howard & Howard 1985), it is almost certain that the specimen used in the drawing was found in the Caribbean Sea. Two other large species of Elysia feeding on Bryopsis spp. were described from the tropical Pacific. Both have a black band along the parapodial edge and a submarginal orange band similar to those of E. ornata. The first species, E. grandifolia (Kelaart, 1858), was described from Sri Lanka as having black and gold marginal lines along parapodia that fused with the tail (Kelaart 1858). The second species, E. marginata (Pease, 1871) was originally described from the Hawaiian Islands and subsequently from Tahiti as having a white band between the orange and black marginal bands (Pease 1871). Authorities subsequently debated whether E.grandifolia had denticulate teeth (Eliot 1904, 1908; O’Donoghue 1932). Both E. marginata and E. grandifolia were synonymized with E. ornata based on morphological comparisons between Pacific and Caribbean material (Ev. Marcus 1980; Heller & Thompson 1983; Jensen 1992).
Recent integrative taxonomic work revealed that the E. marginata-grandifolia complex contained four candidate species in Pacific, all distinct from each other and from E. ornata by (1) molecular sequence analyses of two genetic loci; (2) external features including color of rhinophores and marginal bands, folding of parapodia into siphonal openings, tail shape, and pattern of dorsal vessels; and (3) color and pattern of ECY (Krug et al. 2013). Elysia ornata is therefore restricted to the Caribbean, and some related Pacific species await formal description.
[details]
Recent integrative taxonomic work revealed that the E. marginata-grandifolia complex contained four candidate species in Pacific, all distinct from each other and from E. ornata by (1) molecular sequence analyses of two genetic loci; (2) external features including color of rhinophores and marginal bands, folding of parapodia into siphonal openings, tail shape, and pattern of dorsal vessels; and (3) color and pattern of ECY (Krug et al. 2013). Elysia ornata is therefore restricted to the Caribbean, and some related Pacific species await formal description.
[details]
MolluscaBase eds. (2025). MolluscaBase. Elysia ornata (Swainson, 1840). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=139682 on 2025-11-19
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Nomenclature
original description
(of Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840) Swainson, W. (1840). A treatise on malacology; or the natural classification of shells and shell-fish. Longman, London, viii + 419 pp., available online at http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/33450
page(s): 250 [details]
basis of record Jensen K. (2015). Sacoglossa (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Heterobranchia) from northern coasts of Singapore. <em>Raffles Bulletin of Zoology.</em> suppl. 31: 226-249. [details]
basis of record Krug P.J., Vendetti J.E. & Valdés Á. (2016). Molecular and morphological systematics of <i>Elysia</i> Risso, 1818 (Heterobranchia: Sacoglossa) from the Caribbean region. <em>Zootaxa.</em> 4148(1): 1-137., available online at https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4148.1.1 [details] Available for editors
[request]
new combination reference Verrill, A. E. (1901). Additions to the fauna of the Bermudas from the Yale expedition of 1901, with notes on other species. <em>Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences.</em> 11: 15-62, 9 plates., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/13463998
page(s): 28, pl. 4 fig. 5 [details]
page(s): 250 [details]
basis of record Jensen K. (2015). Sacoglossa (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Heterobranchia) from northern coasts of Singapore. <em>Raffles Bulletin of Zoology.</em> suppl. 31: 226-249. [details]
basis of record Krug P.J., Vendetti J.E. & Valdés Á. (2016). Molecular and morphological systematics of <i>Elysia</i> Risso, 1818 (Heterobranchia: Sacoglossa) from the Caribbean region. <em>Zootaxa.</em> 4148(1): 1-137., available online at https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4148.1.1 [details] Available for editors
[request]new combination reference Verrill, A. E. (1901). Additions to the fauna of the Bermudas from the Yale expedition of 1901, with notes on other species. <em>Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences.</em> 11: 15-62, 9 plates., available online at https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/13463998
page(s): 28, pl. 4 fig. 5 [details]
Other
context source (Bermuda)
Jensen, R. H. (1997). A Checklist and Bibliography of the Marine Molluscs of Bermuda. Unp. , 547 pp [details]
additional source Hirose, M., Suzuki, H. & Yamamoto, T. (2003). Body color and growth of <i>Elysia ornata</i> (Opisthobranchia: Sacoglossa). <em>Venus (Journal of the Malacological Society of Japan).</em> 62(1-2): 55-64. [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source Marcus, Ev. (1980). Review of Western Atlantic Elysiidae (Opisthobranchia Ascoglossa) with a description of a new <i>Elysia</i> species. <em>Bulletin of Marine Science.</em> 30 (1): 54-79., available online at https://www.ingentaconnect.com/contentone/umrsmas/bullmar/1980/00000030/00000001/art00006
page(s): 63, figs 1-3, 38, 44 [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source Rosenberg, G.; Moretzsohn, F.; García, E. F. (2009). Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 579–699 <i>in:</i> Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas. [details] Available for editors [request]
additional source Hirose, M., Suzuki, H. & Yamamoto, T. (2003). Body color and growth of <i>Elysia ornata</i> (Opisthobranchia: Sacoglossa). <em>Venus (Journal of the Malacological Society of Japan).</em> 62(1-2): 55-64. [details] Available for editors
[request]additional source Marcus, Ev. (1980). Review of Western Atlantic Elysiidae (Opisthobranchia Ascoglossa) with a description of a new <i>Elysia</i> species. <em>Bulletin of Marine Science.</em> 30 (1): 54-79., available online at https://www.ingentaconnect.com/contentone/umrsmas/bullmar/1980/00000030/00000001/art00006
page(s): 63, figs 1-3, 38, 44 [details] Available for editors
[request]additional source Rosenberg, G.; Moretzsohn, F.; García, E. F. (2009). Gastropoda (Mollusca) of the Gulf of Mexico, Pp. 579–699 <i>in:</i> Felder, D.L. and D.K. Camp (eds.), Gulf of Mexico–Origins, Waters, and Biota. Texas A&M Press, College Station, Texas. [details] Available for editors
[request]
Present Present in aphia/obis/gbif/idigbio Inaccurate Introduced: alien Containing type locality
From editor or global species database
Taxonomy Other genetically distinct Indo-Pacific species have a similar external morphology and anatomy and have been placed in the synonymy of Elysia ornata (Jensen 1992), thus it is important to determine the type locality of all available names for this species complex. No type locality was specified in the original description of Thallepus ornatus, but because Reverend Guilding [1797–1831] lived in St. Vincent and worked exclusively on Caribbean natural history (Howard & Howard 1985), it is almost certain that the specimen used in the drawing was found in the Caribbean Sea. Two other large species of Elysia feeding on Bryopsis spp. were described from the tropical Pacific. Both have a black band along the parapodial edge and a submarginal orange band similar to those of E. ornata. The first species, E. grandifolia (Kelaart, 1858), was described from Sri Lanka as having black and gold marginal lines along parapodia that fused with the tail (Kelaart 1858). The second species, E. marginata (Pease, 1871) was originally described from the Hawaiian Islands and subsequently from Tahiti as having a white band between the orange and black marginal bands (Pease 1871). Authorities subsequently debated whether E.grandifolia had denticulate teeth (Eliot 1904, 1908; O’Donoghue 1932). Both E. marginata and E. grandifolia were synonymized with E. ornata based on morphological comparisons between Pacific and Caribbean material (Ev. Marcus 1980; Heller & Thompson 1983; Jensen 1992).Recent integrative taxonomic work revealed that the E. marginata-grandifolia complex contained four candidate species in Pacific, all distinct from each other and from E. ornata by (1) molecular sequence analyses of two genetic loci; (2) external features including color of rhinophores and marginal bands, folding of parapodia into siphonal openings, tail shape, and pattern of dorsal vessels; and (3) color and pattern of ECY (Krug et al. 2013). Elysia ornata is therefore restricted to the Caribbean, and some related Pacific species await formal description.
[details]
To Barcode of Life (44 barcodes)
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (14 publications)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Elysia ornata)
To GenBank (50 nucleotides; 55 proteins)
To GenBank (50 nucleotides; 55 proteins) (from synonym Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840)
To Global Biotic Interactions (GloBI)
To PESI
To PESI (from synonym Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840)
To Sea Slug Forum (via archive.org)
To ITIS
To Biodiversity Heritage Library (14 publications)
To European Nucleotide Archive, ENA (Elysia ornata)
To GenBank (50 nucleotides; 55 proteins)
To GenBank (50 nucleotides; 55 proteins) (from synonym Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840)
To Global Biotic Interactions (GloBI)
To PESI
To PESI (from synonym Thallepus ornatus Swainson, 1840)
To Sea Slug Forum (via archive.org)
To ITIS
