First record of Aphelodoris antillensis Bergh, 1879 (Gastropoda: Nudibranchia) from the southwestern Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

The nudibranch Aphelodoris antillensis Bergh, 1879 was orig-inally described from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and later recorded from Bermuda, Florida, and across the entire Caribbean region south to Colombia and Venezuela. This paper reports the first record of A. antillensis from the southwestern Atlantic Ocean, as a result of the collection of one specimen from Brazil. The specimen presents the characteristic translucent-white mantle scattered with small reddish-brown spots, a large, granular prostate, and a very close connection between the uterine duct and the vagina with the bursa copulatrix. The present record expands the known geographic distribution of A. antillensis more than 6,000 kilometres southward.