Perched on a blade of algae like a sheep on a hillside, this Costasiella kuroshimae—affectionately known as the “Shaun the Sheep” sea slug—grazes in miniature. Photographed in Anilao, Philippines, its leaf-like body and black-tipped rhinophores evoke a pastoral scene, reimagined in the currents of the reef. This tiny sacoglossan (sap-sucking sea slug) doesn’t just mimic a grazing animal—it photosynthesizes, borrowing chloroplasts from its food to fuel its life. The image invites us to see the reef not just as a wilderness, but as a landscape of quiet, surreal familiarity.
Perched on a blade of algae like a sheep on a hillside, this Costasiella kuroshimae—affectionately known as the “Shaun the Sheep” sea slug—grazes in miniature. Photographed in Anilao, Philippines, its leaf-like body and black-tipped rhinophores evoke a pastoral scene, reimagined in the currents of the reef. This tiny sacoglossan (sap-sucking sea slug) doesn’t just mimic a grazing animal—it photosynthesizes, borrowing chloroplasts from its food to fuel its life. The image invites us to see the reef not just as a wilderness, but as a landscape of quiet, surreal familiarity.
