Not so sluggish after all

 

Feeding Time at Mike Giangrasso's Reef Aquarium

When it comes to regeneration, many sea slugs are not all that sluggish.

"Off with the head!” might spell death for most living beings, but not so for young sacoglossans.  These slugs often decapitate themselves in order to produce new bodies.  The detached head can then grow an exact copy of the formerly attached body.

This is a handy trick that could render guillotines useless.  But it’s not the only one that such critters are capable of.  They’ve also managed to “steal chloroplasts” from green algae in order to replicate photosynthetic abilities.  This allows the severed head to produce energy directly from sunlight while forming a duplicate body.

Resources

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/this-sea-slug-can-chop-off-its-head-and-grow-an-entire-new-body-twice/ar-BB1enxeC?ocid=uxbndlbing

Copyright March 8, 2021 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved