Bad hair day? Not quite!
This is Dendronotus iris, a kind of nudibranch. Those “hairs” you see are actually branching gills, which can be tipped with white, orange, yellow, or purple. This nudibranch prowls the rocky reefs of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary for anemones to chow down on.
(Photo: Chad King/NOAA)
[Image: A close view of a nudibranch, a shell-less mollusk. The nudibranch is dark red, with orange branching gills.]
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