Spanish Dancer Nudibranch

The Spanish Dancer Hxabranchus sanguineus is a large and colorful nudibranch. A marine gastropod mollusk, it belongs to the same taxonomic class as slugs and snails and lives on coral or rocky reefs in nature. With a scientific name that literally means “blood colored six gills”, this nudibranch can swim for short periods of time. Flapping its appendages, it resembles a flamenco dress in motion as it undulates while swimming. Usually found in a mottled red color, it can contain hints of white, orange, or pink. In the absence of eyes, it will use two tentacles on top of its head as sensory organs to help it locate food, and others of its kind.

The Spanish Dancer is most active at night and is a carnivore that feeds on sponges. After consuming a sponge in the Halichondra family, it can produce a toxin that is a deterrent to predators and passes this toxin down to any future eggs to keep them safe also. That, along with their bright coloring, is a warning to potential predators.

This member of the Hexabranchidae family is a hermaphrodite but needs another of its kind to reproduce. Eggs are deposited in ribbons that are coiled among rocks or corals, resembling ribbons or rosettes.