Nudibranchs of Pohnpei,
Caroline Islands,
Federated States of Micronesia
Pohnpei is a few hundred miles west of the Marshall Islands. It is a high island
surrounded (mostly) by a barrier reef enclosing a lagoon filled with shallow
coral reefs. The lagoon tends to be a bit turbid from run-off from the high
island, so much of the diving takes place in passes in the barrier reef, where
clear ocean water flows in and out with the changing of the tides. Diving here
makes an interesting change from the low atoll islands in the Marshalls, and
it is not too far away, so we've made a number of trips down there to seek and photograph
slugs we don't find in the Marshalls. This is by no means an exhaustive treatment
of Pohnpei nudibranchs; we have only scratched the surface of what is there.
Likewise, it is hard to say too much about the biology and distribution of species
from even a half dozen or so week-long trips. (Anyone else find it odd how some
researchers can make sweeping statements and come to such definitive conclusions
from a 2-week environmental survey? Heck, I can't be as certain as some of the
reports I've seen even after more than 20 years in the Marshalls!)
All our diving in Pohnpei has been through The
Village Hotel, a great place to stay in general but also with its own dive shop that
employs some eagle-eyed nudibranch-aware
dive guides. And yes, there are many other fascinating photo subjects in the
Pohnpei marine environment--manta rays, sharks, eagle rays, swirling schools
of barracuda, angelfish, anemones and clownfish, gorgeous soft corals, and on
and on--but we'll leave those for another time and place.
No attempt has been made here to put the species into taxonomic order. We may do that in the future if the list gets too long from addition of more species. We will be returning to hunt for more!
Aegires
gardineri
Aegires
minor
Aegires
serenae
Ardeadoris
egretta
Chromodoris
annae
Chromodoris
coi
Chromodoris
elisabethina
Chromodoris
geometrica
Chromodoris
kuniei
Chromodoris
magnifica
Chromodoris
strigata
Discodoris
concinna
Flabellina
rubrolineata
Halgerda
tessellata
Hypselodoris
decorata
Nembrotha
cristata
Nembrotha
kubaryana
Nembrotha
lineolata
Phidiana
indica
Phyllidia
carlsonhoffi
Phyllidia
coelestis
Phyllidia
elegans
Phyllidia
exquisita
Phyllidia
madangensis
Phyllidia
ocellata
Phyllidia
tula
Phyllidia
sp. p359
Phyllidiella
granulata
Phyllidiella
pustulosa
Phyllidiopsis
burni
Phyllidiopsis
fissurata
Phyllidiopsis
striata
Platydoris
scabra
Pteraeolidia
ianthina
Reticulidia
fungia
Tambja
morosa
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In-Depth Images Kwajalein is Scott and Jeanette Johnson.