Facts: The Sea Bunny

The sea bunny is a tiny, dored nudibranch that is often less than an inch long. These adorable sea slugs can be found throughout the Indo-Pacific Ocean from South Africa to the Central Pacific. They are mollusks, but as adults they possess no internal or external shell. The most popular images of sea bunnies show white animals with black spots. However, these sea slugs are usually yellow and black. They have a pair of sensory organs on their head called rhinophores. These are the structures that resemble ears on the sea bunny. The rhinophores serve to pick up smells in their environment. Sensory tentacles near the mouth help them feel their way around. They have tiny eyes that can only detect light and shadows. Their fur-like coat and speckled appearance is due to the presence of sensory tubercles and tiny needle-like structures called spicules that cover the animal's back and aid in sensing their environment. The structure on the sea bunny's back that looks like a little flower is the sea slug's external gills. The feathery gills maximize surface area in order to extract oxygen from the water. Sea bunnies, like most nudibranchs, are simultaneous hermaphrodites. This means they have both male and female reproductive organs. They can mate with any other mature member of their species. They probably only live a few months to a year. Sea bunnies don't have to worry much about predators because they are very toxic. They steal their toxic defenses from the sponges that they feed on. For more marine facts, click the SUBSCRIBE button!!