From American Museum of Natural History
Have you ever seen the tropical gasflame (Phestilla sibogae)? This colorful critter is a nudibranch-one of more than 2,000 known species of these soft-bodied marine molluscs. Growing only up to 1.4 in (3.5 cm) long, this sea slug inhabits parts of the Indo-Pacific. Notice the tentacle-like structures on its body? They’re called cerata. Nudibranchs use them to store stinging cells from prey like jellyfish, converting their meals into a form of self defense!
Photo: profmollusc, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, iNaturalist
It’s hard to believe they’re from this planet!
I was subbed to the nudibranch comm for a bit, but it died off a while back. Lots of neat stuff still there though.