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Invertebrate
Not Evaluated

Spanish Dancer

Hexabranchus sanguineus

The Spanish dancer (Hexabranchus sanguineus) is a dorid nudibranch, a very large and vividly coloured sea slug and marine gastropod mollusc in the family Hexabranchidae. The genus has long been taxonomically contentious, and a detailed molecular and morphological study published in 2023 found that the name H. sanguineus had been applied to at least five distinct species.

Family

Hexabranchidae

Avg Size

20-40 cm

Habitat

It is recorded from the Red Sea, the Western Indian Ocean, French Polynesia and the Western Pacific, with a different colour morph in each region that cannot be told apart by anatomy or DNA barcoding. It favours rocky and coral reefs rich in sponges and shelters at depths from 1 to 50 metres.

Behaviour

By day the Spanish dancer keeps out of the light in crevices, emerging only late at night. Like all nudibranchs it is hermaphroditic, and its egg ribbons, coloured from bright red to pink, form a spiral whose size matches that of the animal. It feeds on sponges of the family Halichondriidae, drawing from them a potent chemical it uses for defence; it then channels these compounds into its egg ribbons as macrolides, giving the otherwise defenceless ribbons a chemical deterrent.

Spanish Dancer

Where & When to See It

Shaab El Erg

occasional
Year Round

Salem Express

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Abu Nugar

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Maksur

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Sabina

occasional
Year Round

Shabrur Um Gamar

occasional
Year Round

Shark & Yolanda Reef

occasional
Year Round

Shark Observatory

occasional
Year Round

Shark's Bay

occasional
Year Round

Siyul Kebira

occasional
Year Round

Small Giftun

occasional
Year Round

Sodfa

occasional
Year Round

Soma Bay Garden

occasional
Year Round

The Alternatives

occasional
Year Round

Thomas Reef

occasional
Year Round

Tower

occasional
Year Round

Turft El Shahed

occasional
Year Round

Turtle Bay

occasional
Year Round

Turtle Reef

occasional
Year Round

Umm Gamar North

occasional
Year Round

White Knight

occasional
Year Round

Woodhouse Reef

occasional
Year Round

Daedalus Reef

occasional
Year Round

Eel Garden

occasional
Year Round

Elphinstone

occasional
Year Round

Gordon Reef

occasional
Year Round

Middle Garden

occasional
Year Round

Sha'ab Samadai (Dolphin House)

occasional
Year Round

Sha'ab Sharm

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Eissa

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Eshta

occasional
Year Round

Shaab Petra

occasional
Year Round

Small Crack

occasional
Year Round

Umm Gamar South

occasional
Year Round

Abu Dabbab

occasional
Year Round

Abu Kifan

occasional
Year Round

Abu Ramada North

occasional
Year Round

Abu Ramada South

occasional
Year Round

Amphoras

occasional
Year Round

Banana Reef

occasional
Year Round

Belina Wreck

occasional
Year Round

Big Giftun

occasional
Year Round

Careless Reef

occasional
Year Round

El Erug

occasional
Year Round

El Fanadir

occasional
Year Round

El Fanous West

occasional
Year Round

El Mina Wreck

occasional
Year Round

Erg Abu Ramada

occasional
Year Round

Erg Sabina

occasional
Year Round

Erg Somaya

occasional
Year Round

Far Garden

occasional
Year Round

Fiddle Garden

occasional
Year Round

Fury Shoals

occasional
Year Round

Gota Abu Ramada

occasional
Year Round

Habili Ali

occasional
Year Round

Hamda

occasional
Year Round

Jackfish Alley

occasional
Year Round

Jackson Reef

occasional
Year Round

Kormoran

occasional
Year Round

Laguna Reef

occasional
Year Round

Near Garden

occasional
Year Round

Panorama Reef

occasional
Year Round

Paradise

occasional
Year Round

Pinky Wall

occasional
Year Round

Ras Bob

occasional
Year Round

Ras Burg

occasional
Year Round

Ras Disha

occasional
Year Round

Ras Ghamila

occasional
Year Round

Ras Ghozlani

occasional
Year Round

Ras Katy

occasional
Year Round

Ras Nasrani

occasional
Year Round

Ras Um Sid

occasional
Year Round

Ras Zaatar

occasional
Year Round

Abu Hashish

common
Year Round

Kimon M

common
Year Round

Abu Nuhas

common
Year Round

The Islands

common
Year Round

Rosalie Moller

common
Year Round

Aida

common
Year Round

Lighthouse

common
Year Round

Little Brother Island

common
Year Round

Moray Garden - Golden Blocks

common
Year Round

Big Brother Island

common
Year Round

Napoleon Reef

common
Year Round

Blue Hole - El Bells

common
Year Round

Bluff Point

common
Year Round

Abu Ghalawa

common
Year Round

Carnatic

common
Year Round

Chrisoula K

common
Year Round

Dunraven (Beacon Rock)

common
Year Round

Eel Gardens

common
Year Round

North Gabr El Bint

common
Year Round

North Ras Abu Galum

common
Year Round

Numidia

common
Year Round

South Ras Abu Galum

common
Year Round

Shaab Claudia

common
Year Round

The Barge at Bluff Point

common
Year Round

Ras Abu Helal

common
Year Round

The Canyon

common
Year Round

Shaab Sataya

common
Year Round

The Caves

common
Year Round

Giannis D

common
Year Round

The Ulysses

common
Year Round

Thistlegorm

common
Year Round

Temple

common
Year Round

Three Pools

common
Year Round

Shag Rock (Kingston)

common
Year Round

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