A small, real-life “dragon” made a rare appearance on the Australian beach, according to reports this week.
It’s not really a “dragon,” but it’s actually a sea slug, Glaucus atlanticus, known as the “blue dragon.” This rare creature is also venomous and has a painful sting. If you see the slug, don’t try to handle it.
It grows between 3 and 4 centimeters, and it uses the bright, neon-blue color to blend in with the water’s surface.
“If you are ever lucky enough to find a blue dragon, you should never, ever touch it; reported effects include burning, hives, and dark, damaged patches of skin. It’s not known what happened to the person holding G. atlanticus in the photograph below, but it likely wasn’t pleasant,” MentalFloss adds.
Griffith University marine invertebrates expert Kylie Pitt said it’s good the Facebook user who uploaded the viral video didn’t handle the slug.
“I have handled them before and wasn’t stung, but I would not recommend anyone pick them up because they can have a painful sting,” Professor Pitt told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
Pitt added that the slugs are quite strange.
“They are really weird,” she said. “The glaucus eat blue bottles – they float upside down and move around using the water’s surface tension.”
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