Selection: Noumea varians

Noumea varians (Pease, 1871) [Chromodoris]

Click the thumbnail photos to enhance!

Noumea varians is characterized by the pink or orange background colour, often with a purple tinge, by the constant width of of the broad cream band at the mantle margin, which has on its inside edge a thin reddish purple line, and by the white midline, which varies from a broad white band to a series of up to three thin elongate white streaks, but never forms a ring around the gill pocket. the rhinophores are translucent orange with a white core The gills are translucent with a tinge of orange in the upper half.
There are many similar coloured chromodorids which Bill Rudman calls the "Noumea purpurea colour group".
Pretty similar are:
Mexichromis pusilla which differs by the varying width of the cream band at the mantle margin, besides the two white streaks in the midline is it very thin, between the gills and the rhinophores is it very broad, giving the appearance of a waist
Noumea norba, which differs by the white band or white patch around the gill pocket,
Durvilledoris similaris which differs by the translucent pinkish purple mantle and by a median white line which forms a ring around the gill pocket. The upper half of the rhinophores and gills is translucent red/orange, the lower half is translucent pinkish purple, and
Noumea alboannulata which has an opaque white band in the midline which splits just behind the rhinophores to form an elongate oval which encircles the gill pocket.
More informations on Noumea varians are at Bill Rudman's Sea-Slug Forum!