Ardeadoris cruenta

Order: NUDIBRANCHIA
Suborder: EUCTENIDIACEA
Infraorder: DORIDACEA
Superfamily: DORIDOIDEA
Family: CHROMODORIDIDAE
Genus: Ardeadoris
Species: Ardeadoris cruenta

DISTRIBUTION

Ardeadoris cruenta is a beautiful and colorful nudibranch that occurs in the tropical Western Pacific Ocean.

Sightings are relatively rare and the species has been recorded in Queensland of Australia, the Lembeh Straits in northern Sulawesi and the Solomon Islands in Oceania.

The genus name “cruenta” is derived from the feminine form of the Latin “cruentus”, which means “stained with blood”, a reference to the distinctive red spots on its upper dorsum. It has a pale-lemon colored body with a bright yellow and white lined frilly mantle and foot.