Description

• Chaetopleura lurida is a small to medium-sized marine chiton in the family Chaetopleuridae. Its elongated, oval body is protected by eight overlapping shell plates, typically brownish-green or dark grey with small cream-coloured markings. The plates have distinctive rounded, raised bumps arranged in rows, while the moderately wide girdle is greyish-green and covered with tiny scales and golden-brown bristles. Adults commonly measure around 20–30 mm long.

Range

• This species occurs in the eastern Pacific, from the central Gulf of California south along the Pacific coasts of Mexico and Central America to northern Colombia. It is found along the coast of Guerrero, including Zihuatanejo, Mexico.

Habitat

• Chaetopleura lurida inhabits rocky shores in the lower intertidal zone and shallow subtidal waters, including rocky-coral habitats at depths of several metres. It clings to hard surfaces, often among encrusting algae and coral, where its mottled colouring helps it blend into the surrounding substrate.

Diet

• This chiton grazes on encrusting red and green algae, scraping them from rocks and other hard surfaces with its specialised rasping tongue, called a radula. It also consumes the microscopic algae and organic films covering these surfaces.