Sea Angels

I was down in Singapore last week for a few days to catch up with friends and also meet my sister. It has been such a long time since I've seen Ray and Nard so it was a really good trip. But that's another story.

What I want to talk about here are these cute little critters I saw at the Underwater World in Sentosa island. I've never seen anything like them.

Pic source

They're called sea angels, a type of sea snail that lives in the cold water of the Arctic. Translucent except for the red areas of its head and internal organs in the middle, these creatures are very tiny. The largest ones grow only up to about 5cm long. Most are smaller than that. Probably only as long as the nail on your last finger.

They're born with shells, but lose them when they're born. They use their 'wings' to zip around the with an undulating flapping motion, and it's quite fun to see them moping about in the water. They're just so darn cute. :)

These graceful marine fliers are also hemaphrodites and they help to mutually fertilize each other during mating.

Looking at them, I can see why they're called sea angels. Except for the two little horns on the head. Fallen sea angels? Hehehe. They also remind me of those fantasy creatures usually dreamed up in Japanese anime because they look kinda other-worldly. Something you wouldn't expect to see on earth.

Cool huh?