PHYLUM: Mollusca
CLASS: Gastropoda
SPECIES: Anisodoris nobilis
COMMON NAME: Sea Lemon
Anisodoris, like Triopha, is a dorid nudibranch. Anisodoris is a more typical dorid, though. It has the typical dorid body shape, and it eats sponges.
Anisodoris is one of the more common nudibranchs in the Monterey area. It is yellow to orange with bumps, or tubercles and black spots on it's dorsal surface. The branchial plumes (gills) are white.
It is often confused with the False Sea Lemon, Archidoris montereyensis. In Archidoris, however, the branchial plume is yellow like the body, and the black spots cover some of the tubercles. In Anisodoris the black spots are all between the tubercles, never on them.
Anisodoris is the largest nudibranch in the Monterey area, reaching sizes of around 10 inches. It is found all along the Pacific coast, from Alaska to Baja.