Circular orange gastropod on Tampa Bay rock

[Tired]

Any idea what this is? It's slightly smaller than a dime, and doesn't seem to have a hard shell, though I haven't poked it hard enough to check if there's anything internal. If you shake it around, it curls up like a shell pasta, which is what it's doing in the second photo. It seems to have a narrow foot, with a wide body that overhangs, similar to a terrestrial leatherleaf slug.

Mostly, I want to know what it eats. If it's going to slowly starve in a breeder box with fish food, I want to know, so I can humanely euthanize it instead of letting it wither away.

(don't mind the whelks and gorilla crabs, I know what those are.)

 

[Cell]

@LiverockRocks

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Closer up pics with light like the third and fourth pics you posted may help with an ID, but may some kind of fleshy limpet?

 

[LiverockRocks]

Closer up pics with light like the third and fourth pics you posted may help with an ID, but may some kind of fleshy limpet?

Fleshy limpet is my guess per photos, algae eater.

 

[Tired]

Fleshy limpet does seem to be about right, thanks. I'll let him out of suspicious creature jail with the assorted crabs.

 

[MrGisonni]

 

[Tired]

Can fleshy limpets inflate themselves? I'm pretty sure this is the same creature, and, after parking itself on a patch of dying maybe-sponge for a couple days, it's gone orb-shaped.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Can fleshy limpets inflate themselves? I'm pretty sure this is the same creature, and, after parking itself on a patch of dying maybe-sponge for a couple days, it's gone orb-shaped.

they do and a great score as they feed on algae, diatom, cyano and even eat hydroids. I would love to have one or two of these guys

 

[Tired]

Oh, they eat hydroids! Good; I have a few of those. Opportunistic little critter, especially if it's eating the maybe-sponge, and cute. I like the little eyes.

Any idea what the inflated shape is for? It looks very odd, which, I suppose, might be the point; maybe it's trying not to look like a tasty mollusc.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Oh, they eat hydroids! Good; I have a few of those. Opportunistic little critter, especially if it's eating the maybe-sponge, and cute. I like the little eyes.

Any idea what the inflated shape is for? It looks very odd, which, I suppose, might be the point; maybe it's trying not to look like a tasty mollusc.

Happens after they have ingested a food source

 

[Tired]

That would make sense, given where it was, but it looks to mostly be full of water. Like its stomach is full, and then it has a backpack full of water on top.