Rare rainbow sea slug spotted in Cornwall rock pool

A rare rainbow sea slug has been found by a rock pooler in Cornwall.

The exotic-looking sea creature was seen by a safari guide last week (6 May) while scouring rock pools in Falmouth.

The sea slug is officially known as a Babakina Anadoni and is characterised by its bright colours and unusual form.

The exotic sea creature is usually found in warmed waters in the areas off the coast of Spain, Portugal and France. However, it's the third rainbow sea slug to be spotted in less than a year - despite never having been recorded in UK waters before.

It was first spotted in UK waters in August, by a diver off the Isles of Scilly.

Vicky Barlow, a safari guide at The Rock Pool Project spotted the unusual creature while searching the stretch of rock pools visible at low tide between Castle Beach and Gyllyngvase Beach at low tide.

After finding a large edible crab, a green sea urchin and multiple cushion stars, the rainbow slug was her last find of the day.

“When you have been rock pooling as much as I have been in the last year, you start to get an eye for which rocks are most likely to have something interesting underneath. The last rock I picked up was exactly one of these.

“It was quite a large, heavy rock, covered in various seaweeds, and once lifted something extremely bright and unusual caught my eye. Once delicately placed in a pot to view, the beautiful animal unfurled and revealed itself in full technicolour,” said Barlow.

Dr Ben Holt, CEO of The Rock Pool Project said: "Every time we go rock pooling we find some incredible wildlife and this discovery is extra special.

“It is a reminder that we have precious local marine wildlife that we need to protect."