Is this a sea slug? It's HUGE!!

December 9, 1999
From: Diane


I am hoping you can tell me what this 'creature' is...

My children found in the shallow water on the Beach in Malibu, California, on Labor Day weekend. I think it must have emitted a 'dye' of some sort... because when they put it back in the ocean... the water in the bucket was a bright glowing purple!

Diane

Dear Diane,
Yes this is a sea slug. It belongs to a group of sea slugs we call Sea Hares, many of which produce reddish or purple ink when disturbed. You will find lots more information on Sea Hares in the Forum by going to both the Sea Hares Page and the page on Sea Hare defence. On the top of each page is some background information and below that there are messages and answers about the topic. Have a look at those because there is usually more information there.

Your animal is either Aplysia californica, whch grows up to 75 cms long, or Aplysia vaccaria, which grows to about about 100 cms! Both live in California and both can be this dark colour. Perhaps a Californian can identify the species of your animal for us.

Best wishes,
Bill Rudman.

Rudman, W. B., 1999 (Dec 9). Comment on Is this a sea slug? It's HUGE!! by Diane. [Message in] Sea Slug Forum. Australian Museum, Sydney. Available from http://www.seaslugforum.net/find/1666

Factsheet

Aplysia californica

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