Locals in Cornwall have been left stunned after a rare sea slug was spotted for the first time ever.
An unbelievably extraordinary multi-coloured sea slug has been seen in Cornwall, report Cornwall Live.
In fact, the creature is so rare that - officially recorded - it will only be the second time one has been seen in the UK's waters.
Just weeks ago was the first time the slug was spotted off the Isles of Scilly. Allen Murray, who had been doing a dive near Melledgan, an uninhabited rock island in the Isles, saw the beautiful animal during The Wildlife Trust ’s National Marine Week.
And yesterday, a lucky Kymm Sandum was the local who managed to get a glimpse of the rainbow marine animal.
Kyumm was out snorkelling in West Cornwall on August 28, when the marine invertebrate caught her eye. However, she was left confused at what it was, saying: "I don't want to say where it was as I don't want to endanger it but it was west Cornwall."
She continued: "I had just got all excited after finding a stalked jellyfish (called a stauromedusae). When I looked up I saw the bright colours and thought it was a fishing lure. I was totally stunned when I saw it and thought what a great find. It wasn't until I got home that I found out it was quite an important find."
She took pictures and a short video of the finding. She also said she "didn't want to leave it", adding: "I've never seen anything so beautiful, except Puzzle, my cat."
This species of sea slug is a member of the aeolid nudibranch family and has only been recorded a handful of times along the West coast of Spain and further south in the Atlantic.
Nudibranchs, often known as sea slugs, are soft-bodied marine animals famous for their extraordinary bright colours and striking shapes.
They are much like their land-based, garden relatives and feed on seaweeds, anemones and other sea slugs. Sea slugs can incorporate the stinging cells from their prey into their own bodies, giving them a defence against predators.
Earlier this month one of the colourful sea slugs, measuring just 2cm in length, was captured on camera by Seasearch volunteer Allen Murray during a dive off the Isles of Scilly.
Matt Slater, marine conservation officer at Cornwall Wildlife Trust and co-ordinator of the Seasearch programme for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, said: “What an incredible find. We were extremely excited to hear about the sighting of this colourful nudibranch – a species that we believe has never been recorded in the UK before.
"It’s one of the prettiest sea slugs I’ve seen and, given it's less than half the size of your little finger, it’s amazing Allen spotted it at all!
"There’s still so much out there that we don’t know about our marine environment. Records like this from our Seasearch divers are vital in helping us understand and better protect our seas.”
