The tiny sea slug that runs on sunlight like a plant
This tiny sea slug eats plants and then runs on sunlight, like a living solar panel.
The short version
The leaf sheep is a rice-grain-sized sea slug that steals chloroplasts from the algae it eats and keeps them working inside its body, photosynthesizing sunlight into food for weeks. This 'kleptoplasty' makes it one of the only animals that is part plant.
Why it's so weird
- ✓The Leaf Sheep runs on sunlight like a living solar panel.
- ✓The Leaf Sheep steals the chloroplasts from the algae it eats and keeps them working inside its own body.
- ✓The Leaf Sheep can survive for weeks by basically sunbathing, turning sun into food.
- ✓The Leaf Sheep is one of the only animals on Earth that is genuinely part plant.
- ✓The Leaf Sheep is barely the size of a grain of rice, with leaf-shaped fronds covering its back.
The full story
This tiny sea creature does something that no animal should be able to do. It runs on sunlight, just like a plant. Meet the leaf sheep, an adorable sea slug barely the size of a grain of rice, with little black eyes and leaf-shaped fronds covering its back. When it eats algae, it does not simply digest it. It steals the algae's tiny chloroplasts, the green parts that capture sunlight, and tucks them into its own body. Those stolen chloroplasts keep right on working inside the slug, turning sunlight into food, so the leaf sheep can survive for weeks by basically sunbathing. Scientists call this trick kleptoplasty, which literally means stealing the power to photosynthesize. It is one of the only animals on Earth that is genuinely part plant. A tiny, solar-powered sea sheep. Follow for more weird animal facts.
Watch the 45-second version
Leaf Sheep gallery
