Phyllidia rueppelii

Images taken at Lembeh, Indonesia

Phyllidia rueppelii has a broad ovate shape. The background colouration of the dorsum is dark blue to black. The mantle margin is edged in yellow-orange. The large, isolated, central tubercles are oval and rounded in profile; their broad bases are white, and their apices are yellow-orange. In preserved specimens, three, low, broken, black ridges are present in a longitudinal median position. These ridges, however, are indistinct in live specimens. White semicircles, usually with smaller yellow-orange capped tubercles, occur around the mantle margin. The rhinotubercles are tall, sharply defined, and their apex is yellow-orange. The rhinophores are yellow-orange and each clavus possesses 15- 17 lamellae (specimens greater than 20 mm in length). The oral tentacles are conical and their lateral grooves are short. The ventral surface is grey except for the edge of the mantle and the tips of the oral tentacles which are both yellow-orange. The gills are a darker shade of grey.