Blue Dragon

This article was originally posted at Blue Dragon
Blue Dragon or Blue sea slug (Glaucus atlanticus) is an aeolid nudibranch which comes under the Phylum mollusca and family Glaucidae. These sea slugs are pelagic: they float upside down by using the surface tension of the water to stay up, where they are carried along by the winds and ocean currents. THis animal is camouflaged: the blue side of their body faces upwards, blending in with the blue of the water. The silver/grey side of the sea slugs faces downwards, blending in with the silvery surface of the sea.

It feeds on other pelagic creatures, including the venomous siphonophore, the Portuguese man o" war. This sea slug stores stinging nematocysts from the cnidarian within its own tissues as defense against predation. Humans handling the slug may receive a very painful and potentially dangerous sting.

You will be interested in knowing what a nudibranch is! Nudibranchs, naked sea slugs.

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