#elysia chlorotica

[briery]

Green sea slug, (Elysia chlorotica). Photo source.

[sesamenom]

a handful of mercreatures

[little-creature-of-the-day]

little creature of the day: Eastern Emerald Elysia

pretty!

image source

[spentimental]

E is for Elysia Chlorotica, the solar-powered sea slug 

Just as eating shrimp turns flamingos pink and eating too many carrots will turn you orange (a process called carotenosis), the eastern emerald elysia get their green color from algae. But they also take the Kirby approach of absorbing the algae’s power of photosynthesis. To do this, they slurp the algae up and digest all but the chloroplasts. They then keep the chloroplasts alive and incorporate them into their own cells. The chloroplasts continue operating as usual, photosynthesizing for their new host. This is called kleptoplasty.

Much like with Cadlina Laevis, I hope to return to Elysia one day to better represent her indescribable beauty. Designing her dress took far longer than it should have and really brought to light the limitations of vector art and my lack of experience as an artist. I didn’t end up using either of these vintage dresses for Queen Elysia, but I wanted to share them anyway as I may not use them for future Alphabet Superset cards. This beaded gown looked perfect due to the similarities to the sparkles of elysia chlorotica, but I wanted to pay homage to the 1960s trend of the ruffled collar. I don’t have any other animals planned that I think the ruffled collar would fit except elysia. I tried to replicate this dress but it actually broke my brain. Then my document overwhelmed Inkscape to the point of crashing multiple times and I lost some progress that I didn’t feel like redoing. She ended up with a scalloped collar instead.

Last time, I talked about struggling with motivation. I’ve been trying to curb my avoidance by coming up with another long-term project like the Alphabet Superset challenge that I can turn to when I lose steam. I know it sounds like a ticket to burnout, but I think having permission to procrastinate with a specific project will help keep me invested in the things that I have committed to. The blessing of having a miniscule following is that I can post without worrying that I’ll upset anyone by breaking my established pattern. For those of you with creative blogs like art or writing, what do you wish you could experiment with but are afraid to do so?

Next Week’s Sneak Peek:

Flying fish, and finally our first spade!

[vivsemporium]

If there's any questions or any information that I have missed, please feel free to comment down below and I'll do my best to respond!

[2t2r]

Cette limace de mer en forme de feuille est un hybride animal végétal

Nouvel article publié sur https://www.2tout2rien.fr/cette-limace-de-mer-en-forme-de-feuille-est-un-hybride-animal-vegetal/

Cette limace de mer en forme de feuille est un hybride animal végétal

[robin-5-technically]

my fav sea creature is prolly sea pigs!

they're like underwater babysitters and they let baby crabs hide under them and they're really cute i love them

🐌

I am quite fond of leaf slugs.

[notebook-enthusiast]

I need to rant to someone about the taxonomy of soft-bodied marine gastropod molluscs

[aquilathefighter]

@galacticstingray LOOK!!!!!!! THIS IS ONE OF THE ONES THAT HAS CHLOROPLASTS!!!!!!

Elysia chlorotica, a sea slug that behaves like a leaf

[briery]

Elysia chlorotica feeding on Vaucheria litorea, a yellow-green algae. (Photo source)

[natureisthegreatestartist]

Are these leaves or something else? Is you said "something else," you're right! They are sea slugs called Elysia chlorotica, which use sunlight and CO2 , much like plants.

[gaystropod]

~•☆°~ Sculptin Slugs ~°☆•~

☆ Elysia chlorotica

☆ Glaucys marginatus

☆ Goniobranchus geminus

☆ Nembrotha kubaryana

[giulliadella]

Oh this is one of my favourite creatures!

It doesn't only steal chloroplasts, but also produces plant-like enzymes that stabilize them inside its body. The genes for those enzymes might have come from horizontal gene transfer, which means that this creature didn't only steal the chloroplasts from algae, but the parts of their genome required to maintain them.

Eastern Emerald Elysia (Elysia chlorotica), family Plakobranchidae, found along the East Coast of the United States

This creature engages in kleptoplasty, taking the chloroplasts from the algae that it eats, and using the chloroplasts for the waste products they create though photosynthesis. It's kind of a… solar powered sea slug!

These sea slugs are not nudibranchs, but are in a different group of gastropods.

image via: Views of Elysia chlorotica from Martha’s Vineyard. Figure 15 of Krug et al., 2016, Zootaxa 4148:1

[katiajewelbox]

Meet the real life “Bulbasaur”! That Pokemon is famous for being a dinosuar-like animal with a flowering green plant that grows on its back and provides energy. It sounds like pure fantasy, but there is actually an animal that has a similar lifestyle...

“There are several species of sea slugs that have evolved to look like leaves. One example is the Elysia chlorotica, also known as the eastern emerald elysia or the "solar-powered sea slug". This species of sea slug is found along the east coast of North America and is known for its bright green color and leaf-like appearance, which allows it to blend in with the surrounding seaweed. In addition to its leaf-like appearance, the Elysia chlorotica has the unique ability to steal genes from the algae it consumes, allowing it to photosynthesize and use solar energy to survive. This makes it one of the few animals on Earth that is capable of harnessing the power of the sun to meet its energy needs - it can go without eating for 9 months because it can photosynthesize just like a plant while basking in the sun!”

(Source: The Organic Consumers’ Association of Australia Linked In page) #biodiversity #nature #wildlife #naturephotography #macro #conservation #birds #naturelovers #biodiversit #wildlifephotography #climatechange #environment #sustainability #photography #biology #biodiversidad #animals #insects #ecology #insect #bird #biodiversidade #flowers #macrophotography #naturaleza #forest #perfection #earth #science #wildlifeconservation

[themadbiologist]

I like biology, generally (who would’ve guessed), but the fact that I have to do so much maintenance is infuriating. Who designed this fleshsac. Can I get a refund? I want to be a nudibranch. Cyerce elegans or Elysia chlorotica, preferably.

Why do I need to eat, exercise, stretch, and keep the tofu in my skull happy? And also pay for the privilege of being alive?

Honestly.

[snailifier]

@>:🧂 look at my favourite snail species (it's Elysia chlorotica)

@=: snoah, sney're sno sneatiful!!! <3