I painted a nudibranch!
Nudibranchs (“noody branks”) are a group of squishy little molluscs that have very wacky shapes and colourations.
My favourite nudibranch is the blue dragon (Glaucus atlanticus). These little guys are only about 3 cm long so my painting is 13 times larger than life.
Blue dragons are super cool. They swallow a little air bubble which makes them float to the surface of the water. Once there, the surface tension keeps them afloat, and winds and currents carry them around as they meander through the ocean. The placement of their air sac (where they store their bubble) means they actually float upside down.
This works to their advantage because of their coutershading which hides them from predators. Looking up from the bottom of the sea they look silvery-grey, blending in with the sky behind them. Looking down from the sky, they are this blue pattern, blending with the blue of the ocean (albeit very flamboyantly). This colouration might also protect them from UV rays.
Blue dragons aren’t phased by bluebottles (Portuguese man o’war); they are immune to their venom. In fact they’re so unphased that they nibble on bluebottles to steal their venom and use for themselves. Imagine being so badass that you munch on a monster with tentacles more than 100 times longer than you. They store the venom in little sacs at the ends of their cute little fingers so they can deliver a mega death poke to their predators. The venom is so concentrated in their finger sacs that it’s even more powerful than a bluebottle’s sting.
Thank you for coming to my blue dragon seminar, your homework is to google nudibranchs to see how cool they all are.