A new study by the MP2Lab-Kleptoslug Team on the photophysiology of solar-powered sea slugs was published in the journal Physiologia Plantarum. The study compares responses to high-light of Elysia timida and Elysia crispata with chloroplasts from a common algal donor, the green alga Acetabularia acetabulum. The sea slug E. timida displayed remarkable tolerance to high-light stress and sophisticated photoprotective mechanisms such as an active xanthophyll cycle, efficient D1 protein recycling, accumulation of heat-shock proteins and α-tocopherol. In contrast, E. crispata exhibited absence or limitations in these photoprotective strategies. The study highlights that the compatibility between the animal host and the algal donor extends far beyond the ability to ingest and integrate the chloroplasts.