By Paul Homewood
h/t Paul Kolk
It’s silly season again at the BBC!
A new species of sea slug has been discovered in UK waters.
It was caught off the south-west of England from a research ship.
The creature has been named Pleurobranchaea britannica. It belongs to a group found in warmer waters, which could be migrating north due to climate change.
With ocean temperatures at record levels there is concern about the impact on marine life.
Ross Bullimore of the Centre for the Environment, Food and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) made the serendipitous discovery.
About 100 different sea slugs are found in the seas off Britain and Ireland, but he knew instantly this was something special.
"It was like a light bulb going off," he said.
The scientists say the discovery shows we still have more to learn about life in our seas, which are among the best studied in the world.
"To find a new species that’s not microscopic is quite exciting. It shows that there’s still work to be done," said Peter Barry of CEFAS.
Often referred to as an "indicator species", they can help scientists understand the health of marine ecosystems due to their sensitivity to the impacts of climate change and human pressures.
Members of the group to which the new species belongs – Pleurobranchaea – are usually found in northern Spain, Senegal and throughout the Mediterranean Sea.
"We’re seeing the presence of a species [belonging to a group] which has always previously been recorded in warmer waters," said Ross Bullimore.
"It could indicate that what you’re observing is this group of species being able to expand its range further because conditions are becoming more favourable or more appropriate for it."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68438582
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I don’t claim to be a slug expert, but if this little beast is so rare, how do we know they have not been slithering around our coasts for years? The odds of finding one in this sort of fishing expedition must be minimal.
And the idea that our seas are now as warm as the Mediterranean is obviously absurd. Just as is the idea that these slugs have been “migrating” northwards. In fact it has been established by scientists that they can only move at about 5 cm an hour. If it moves steadily forward at this speed every hour in every day, it would still only cover about a quarter of a mile in a year, by which time it would probably be dead!
It shows just how shoddy environmental science has become, if Ross Bullimore can seriously suggest slugs are migrating. If this little specimen really has arrived from furthermore south, it has probably been carried here on ocean currents, or possibly hitched a lift!
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March 1, 2024 at 06:10AM
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