Shaun the Sheep, a tiny sea slug, has been discovered.
Destination: The Philippines with Sea Explorers, Amun ini, and Kids Sea Camp. Neither my wife nor I had ever been to the Philippines before. Margo and Tom Peyton, fellow dive industry friends, had invited us multiple times. Tom talked about a strange alien life he found mesmerizing and how incredible it would be to experience. It’s just impossible to describe, he said, but mindblowing and life-changing, a world you will become obsessed with exploring.
My first muck dive in the Philippines: Marcio, another guest, fellow photographer, and avid, loyal Kids Sea Camp adventurer, spoke of a sheep. I was curious; he had my attention. The guides you see can show you almost anything you request, but who knows what to request in a land of aliens? Marcio named the critter focus of this trip for himself and piqued my curiosity: Shaun the Sheep.
As I descended below the surface of the clear Philippine water, I was not fooled by the desolate, grey, bare sand. Tom Peyton said, “This is the home for some of the most incredible creatures I will ever see.” With all the colors of the universe residing on the most minuscule of animals, like the hundreds of nudibranchs found here or pygmy squid, and then there are the mesmerizing colors of the mandarin fish. Tom was so correct. The obsession began as I saw the true master of camouflage, the pygmy seahorse. While the Philippines’ underwater world is nothing short of a new planet, one critter in particular stole my heart even before we met: Shaun the Sheep. Marcio showed me a photo from his dive, and I was hooked.
Keep in mind my wife, Cristina Zenato, and I dive with sharks for a living, so it was pretty interesting to watch myself get so excited about a creature I could barely see with the naked eye. When you see how cute this little guy is, you will understand why.
What is Kleptoplasty?
A tiny leaf slug (Costasiella Kuroshimae) that grows to a length of 7 millimeters. They graze on algae, suck up their chloroplasts, and retain them within their tissues, allowing them to supplement their diet through photosynthesis. This process is called kleptoplasty.
How could I not become obsessed with an animal the size of a grain of rice capable of using photosynthesis? To feed my obsession, I needed to learn more. Shaun has multiple siblings, like the Bumblebee-looking (Costasiella Sp), and distant cousins living in the Caribbean.
But how do you find something so small in the vastness of the ocean?
In the same way, you find any small creature in the Philippines, you find its home. Shaun the Sheep lives on a specific algae called Avrainvillea. Find the algae, see Shaun the Sheep. Rest assured, my quest for Shaun the Sheep is not over. I am looking forward to seeing and photographing its Caribbean cousin.
By Kewin Lorenzen