DORIS. 



83 



A. Gills united at the base and retractile within a cavity : 

 odontophore broad, with numerous spines. (Doris proper.) 



1. Doris tubercula'ta, Cuvier. 



D. tuberculata, Cut. in Ann. du Mus. v. p. 469, pi. 74. f. 21; A. & H. 

 Brit. Nud. Moll. fam. 1, pi. 3. 



Body elliptical, subdepressed, orange or yellow, sometimes 

 nearly white, usually blotched with brown or olive : mantle 

 thickly covered with moderate-sized, unequal, flattish tuber- 

 cles : dorsal tentacles conical : oral tentacles tubercular : gdls 

 or branchial plumes 9, tripinnate, recurved, large and spread- 

 ing, forming a circle slightly open behind, transparent white, 

 tipped with violet. L. 2-3. 



Habitat : Under stones and in crevices of rocks within tide- 

 marks ; common on all parts of the British coast. Its range 

 of depth does not extend much beyond low-water mark. 



This is the largest of our British Dorides : specimens have 

 been found reaching 4, or sometimes 5, inches in length ; but 

 these are extremely rare. It is a very sluggish animal. 

 [Sometimes used in Shetland as a bait for rock-cod. The 

 fishermen there call it "peer."] The spawn may often be 

 seen in rock-pools in the spring and early summer, forming a 

 conspicuous convoluted cup, of a bufFcolour, with slightly 

 waved margins. 



D. tuberculata is found on the northern and western coasts 

 of France, and is recorded as occurring on the Swedish and 

 Norwegian coasts as well as in the Mediterranean ; but as 

 more than one species have been described under this name by 

 continental authors, the latter habitat at least requires con- 

 firmation. [Heligoland (Frey and Leuckart).] 



This is the D. argo of Pennant, Fleming, and several of our 

 earlier writers. The true D. argo is a Mediterranean species. 



2. D. flam'mea, Alder and Hancock. 



D. flammca, A. & H. in Ann. N. H. xiv. p. 330 ; and Brit. Nud. Moll. 

 fam. 1, pi. 4. 



Body ovate or elliptical, scarlet, rarely with slight blotches 



