‘Completely unusual’ rare sea slug found in British waters for first time

The Babakina anadoni slug is usually found in warmer waters around the coast of Spain

The Babakina anadoni sea slug is usually found in warmer waters around Spain

(Image credit: Allen Murray/Cornwall Wildlife Trust)

published 12 August 2022

An extremely rare sea slug has been recorded in British waters for the first time, by a diver on holiday in the Isles of Scilly. The slug, called Babakina anadoni, is usually found in warmer waters around the coast of Spain, and can grow up to 2cm long. Diver Allen Murray, 65, said it had struck him as “completely unusual” the moment he saw it. “I was looking at some jewel anemones, which are colourful enough, and then I spotted something that looked out of place and went a bit closer,” he said. It’s thought that the slug might have drifted over to the Scillies on ocean currents when it was still a free-floating larva.

Comic’s show goes viral after just one ticket sold

A stand-up comic who went ahead with his show on the Edinburgh Fringe, although only one person had turned up to watch it, has now almost sold out his run. Robin Grainger said he’d been looking forward to his gig, and felt “a bit sad” when he learnt he’d sold just one ticket. He rallied, however, and tailored his hour-long routine to the one person watching – Mike Cass, a radio director from Leicester. Cass said he’d loved the show, and when the story went viral, ticket sales soared.

Ukrainian medical students start course at Cambridge

A group of Ukrainian medical students from the besieged city of Kharkiv have begun a seven-week course at the University of Cambridge, to fill the gaps in their training caused by the war. The 21 students lost learning time during the pandemic, then had their studies completely disrupted by the Russian invasion. Serhii Alkhimov, 21, had spent four months living in a metro station in Kharkiv, where he was the only medic among 2,000 people. He said the course was “an amazing opportunity to see some of the best medicine in the world”.