Sea slug/ sea hare in seaweed

May 21, 2000
From: Jamin Bortz

I was in Galveston, Texas collecting critters from some floating Seaweed when I came across what I call a sea slug. The papers said that all of the seaweed on the beach (tons) was from Bermuda! I guess they had a storm or something. Anyway, the Seaweed is golden brown, it has 1/2 inch leaves with jagged edges, it also has air bladders in the growth structure. It is very firm almost plastic looking alot like what you would see in a pet stores fake plant section. I was collecting shrimp and crabs that matched the seaweed perfectly. The seaweed also has round spots that are small and random, reddish in nature. The shrimp matched the pattern perfectly. The reason for the discription of the algae is that I also found a slug. It is the same color as the seaweed translucent with no shell and can swim with this really cool motion. It has these long thick rabbit ear looking frilly things on the top of its head as well as the back, It is I believe camouflaged to match with the algae. Really neat stuff kinda ugly coloring though. I took a clump of the algae for possible food. Is this enough info to id. could the algae be food, and are sea slugs poisonous.

thanks
Jamin

jbortz6469@aol.com

Bortz, J., 2000 (May 21) Sea slug/ sea hare in seaweed. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/2425

Dear Jamin,
Your excellent description of the algae was a good way to identify the slug. Your algae is almost certainly Sargassum, a brown algae which can live floating in the sea and at the entrance to the Caribbean where the currents form giant eddies great 'beds' of floating algae occur in a region called the Sargasso Sea. Amazing animals, as you have described, have evolved to live on or amongst the floating beds of sea weed and by taking on the colour and shape of the algae they are well camouflaged from predators.

The slug you have found is almost certainly Scyllaea pelagica which spends its whole life (except when it is a free-swimming larva), attached to floating seaweed. I have put your message on the Scyllaea pelagica Page. If you have a look above and below your message you will find information, and other messages about this animal. You will also find many beautiful photos, some on the sargassum weed, taken by Anne Dupont in Florida.

To answer your questions. As far as I know they are not poisonous.
They use the algae for a home, not as food. What they eat are hydroids which also live on the algae. Have a look at the hydroid page for some information on what they are.

I hope this answers your questions. Let me know if your animals match the photos ... and again I am very impressed with your description of the algae.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.

Rudman, W.B., 2000 (May 21). Comment on Sea slug/ sea hare in seaweed by Jamin Bortz. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/2425

Factsheet

Scyllaea pelagica

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