A slug under 1 cm (0.4 in) that has become an internet celebrity: two ringed rhinophores stand up like ears, two black eyespots sit below them, and the back is covered in green cerata tipped with white, so the whole animal reads as a cartoon sheep grazing a lawn. The resemblance is accidental and complete.
The lawn is real enough - it lives on soft green algae, especially Avrainvillea, puncturing cells and keeping the chloroplasts alive in its cerata, which is why the cerata are green while the body is pale. At this size it is invisible without a macro lens, and finding one is a matter of scanning algal mats centimetre by centimetre rather than swimming a reef. Photographers who know the habit come back with the shot; everyone else swims past several every dive without registering that the fuzz on the weed contains animals.
- under 1 cm, black eyespots and two ringed rhinophores like ears
- back covered in green cerata with white tips
- sits on soft green algal mats
- needs a macro lens to see properly
