Colorful Sea Creatures: Mating Nudibranchs

A nudibranchs is a member of Nudibranchia, a group of soft-bodied, marine gastropod mollusks which shed their shell after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colors and striking forms. Most carry their exposed gills on their backs, a feature reflected in the order’s name, Nudibranchia, Latin for "naked gill." Nudis, as they're often called, tend to be brightly colored, with patterns that call to mind rainbow-hued marzipan or psychedelic black-light posters.

Nudibranchs are shell-less marine mollusks. Some 6,000 species live in disparate habitats all over the world, from shallow reefs to two miles beneath the sea surface. All nudibranchs are hermaphrodites, organisms that contain both male and female reproductive organs. A nudibranch can't impregnate itself, but during mating, partners fertilize each other so that both become pregnant and lay eggs—sometimes millions of them. Some larvae are born with a molluscan shell for protection but quickly shed it. Nudis' lives are brief; at most, they live a single year.

12 Facts about Nudibranchs:

1. Nudibranchs are Gastropods in the Phylum Mollusca.
2. All nudibranchs are sea slugs, but not all sea slugs are nudibranchs.
3. There are over 3,000 species of nudibranchs.
4. There are two main types of nudibranchs (two main types of nudibranchs are dorid nudibranchs and eolid nudibranchs).
5. Nudibranchs have a foot, and they leave a slimy trail.
6. Nudibranchs have poor vision.
7. Nudibranchs eat colorful food, which gives them their brilliant color.
8. Nudibranchs may be toxic (to their prey, but not usually to humans).
9. Going green? Some nudibranchs are solar-powered.
10. Nudibranchs maximize their chances of mating by being hermaphrodites.
11. Nudibranchs are important to science.
12. Nudibranchs have a short lifespan.