It used to be true that calling someone a ’slug’ was a real insult. But after a recent discovery regarding this magnificent creature, perhaps we all should start paying slugs just a bit more respect.
After all, can YOU steal genes from algae that allow you to carry out photosynthesis?
Neither can we, but you know who can? The green sea slugs known as Elysia chlorotica, which live in the coastal northeast. Scientists have known about them for years, but one very persistent biologist named Sidney Pierce spent the better part of 20 years studying the Elysia, and his hard work paid off late last year when he made a major discovery: that these sea slugs have the ability to convert sunlight into energy, the same way that plants do.
This is a major find for a couple reasons. The most obvious reason is that no one has ever seen a multicellular animal that can do this, and up until now it seemed improbable (or outright impossible). Beyond that, the implications are fascinating, because these slugs are living proof that DNA from one species can work its way into another species… even if we don’t yet know how they do it. Think of the possibilities if that ability to co-opt some other animal’s DNA is ever harnessed.
We also took note of this story because it reminded us that here on Earth — and for that matter, up among the stars where Triana and the rest of her crew are blazing a trail to a new world — you just never know what new mystery might reveal itself on any given day.