Blue-waved chiton , Tonicella undocaerulea Photo by G. Fletcher
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- Blue-waved chiton, derived from a photo by Dr. Armin Svoboda
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- This set of images was taken of a specimen from tidepool# 6 June 2006 by Garry Fletcher
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- A typical background of Lithothamnion
We frequently encounter this 4 cm. chiton while diving at Race Rocks. It occurs subtidal at 10 meters depth. It also occurs in the lower level tidepools as the photos above illustrate. These chitons strip off several species of calcareous encrusting algae from the rock substrate, They are equipped with a radula or rasp-ike tongue containing iron filings.
Domain Eukarya
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Mollusca
Class Polyplacophora
Order Chitonida
Family Tonicellidae
Genus Tonicella
Species undocaerulea
Common Name: Blue-waved chiton
Other Members of the Phylum Mollusca at Race Rocks.
 Return to the Race Rocks Taxonomyand Image File |
 The Race Rocks taxonomy is a collaborative venture originally started with the Biology and Environmental Systems students of Lester Pearson College UWC. It now also has contributions added by Faculty, Staff, Volunteers and Observers on the remote control webcams. |