Nudibranchs (Go Ahead, Try and Pronounce It)

It has long been my belief that all the denizens of the ocean are perfectly designed killing machines (yes, even plankton) honed over millions of years of evolution to do nothing but viciously rend asunder any and all terrestrial beings foolish enough to enter their domain.

But then I learned of the gentle, benevolent and beautiful Nudibranch. Oh, wait, they're actually cannibalistic carnivores! Nice work, nature. They're like snails without shells, performing their gas exchanges via billowy gills extending from their bodies. They prowl the deep... er, shallows, looking pretty but hiding a sinister motive: an insatiable hunger for other gastropod flesh. Don't be fooled: a nudibranch wouldn't think twice about eating you and everyone you love (so long as you and your loved ones happen to be aquatic invertebrates the size of a small zucchini).

Behold the stunning but deadly Nudibranch!






Consider yourself warned.