The Atlantic Neptune Sea Slug, also known as the "Blue Dragon" or "Manatee", is a blue, small ocean-winged sea slug, a mollusk of the marine gastropod family Neptune family.
The species was first published by European scholars in 1777, and the sea slugs are called "sea gods" because of its appearance like the greek god of the sea gaucus; in Greek mythology, the "sea god" gaucus was immortalized by eating magical grass, but his hands grew fins and his legs became tails.
Chinese name: Atlantic poseidon sea slug (kuò yú)
English name: blue angel
Scientific name: glaucus atlanticus
Realm: Animal kingdom animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Order: Posterior gill opisthobranchia
Suborder: Nudibranchia
General family: Aeolidioidea
Family: Neptune family glaucidae
Genus: Glaucus
Species: Atlanticus Atlanticus
Atlantic poseidon sea slugs are 3 cm long, and their shells have degenerated into an inner shell. On the back there is a transparent thin shell skin, which is generally white with a pearly luster. They have air sacs in their stomachs.
This side of the blue and black is actually its abdomen.
Its back is usually facing downwards and is silvery grey.
The position of the airbags creates this upside-down floating motion. This protective color of the upper (abdomen) blue-and-white (dark) and the lower (back) silver-gray (light) color helps them avoid predators from above and below.
There are bare cheeks (the one like the hand) on the surface, and the number can be as many as 84. Food such as the monk's hat jellyfish contains spiny cells, which they store in their bare cheeks. Therefore, the hand grasping the Atlantic sea god sea slugs will feel stinging.
The Atlantic sea god sea slug mainly preys on larger marine organisms such as monk-hat jellyfish, sail jellyfish, silver coin jellyfish, and purple snails, and occasionally cannibalizes.
Portuguese man-of-war
Sail jellyfish
Purple snail
Silver coin jellyfish
Atlantic sea slugs have no sex, are hermaphroditic, and are ventrally close to each other when mating, and both sea slugs lay eggs after mating. It is highly reproducible, mostly in the fall.
The Atlantic poseidon sea slugs are widely distributed and live in tropical and pantropical open seas, including the south coasts of East Africa and South Africa, the east coast of Europe, Peru, Australia, India and Mozambique. Atlantic poseidon sea slugs prefer a living environment with slow currents and little wind and waves.
Due to its floating with currents and sea breezes, it is occasionally washed up on the beach.
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