A wildlife photographer in Cornwall has shared hypnotic footage of what might be the UK’s most beautiful slug.
“Have you ever seen such a colourful slug?” says wildlife filmmaker Jacob Rheams on Instagram while sharing footage of the nudibranch creeping along in the rockpools.
The multicolour animal looks like a make-believe creature with its bright pink body, and pink and purple cerata (finger-like projections that allow it to breathe) flecked with orange and yellow “frosted tips” at the end.
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Rheam’s followers couldn’t quite believe what they were seeing. “Not even AI could imagine that!” says one user in the comments. “It looks like it was made of play-doh,” adds another.
Rainbow sea slugs (Babakina anadoni) usually live in Mediterranean waters but have been found in the UK as water temperatures increased. They were first recorded in UK waters in 2022 and were seen in Devon for the first time by a father and daughter in 2024.
Although Rheams stumbled upon a rainbow sea slug by accident, he had to have patience before he found another that he could film, saying: “I spent a good month or so searching in the rockpools for it!”
Image and video credit: Jacob Rheams
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