FIRST CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE “SEA SLUG” FAUNA (GASTROPODA, HETEROBRANCHIA) OF THE ALGERIAN COAST
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Keywords

Algeria
inventory
citizen science
heterobranch sea slugs
marine heterobranchs
opisthobranchs

How to Cite

LOMBARDO, A., CHABANE, J., & GHALMI, R. (2026). FIRST CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE “SEA SLUG” FAUNA (GASTROPODA, HETEROBRANCHIA) OF THE ALGERIAN COAST. ANNALES, SERIES HISTORIA NATURALIS, 36(1), 177–202. https://doi.org/10.19233/ASHN.2026.21

Abstract

In Algeria, studies concerning the informally defined group of “sea slugs” have so far focused exclusively on sporadic records of species from various areas of the local coast. Consequently, the sea slug fauna of the Algerian coast remains largely unknown. This study aimed to compile the first list of sea slugs in the Algerian coast by examining new photographic and field data collected between 2010 and 2025. Based on these new data and published literature, it has been possible to confirm that 71 species belonging to 35 families of sea slugs have been recorded in the region to date. Given the historical lack of experts on this faunal group in Algeria and the high marine environmental diversity of its coast, this number is likely a great underestimation.

https://doi.org/10.19233/ASHN.2026.21
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