Sea%20Anemones

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Sea Anemones
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Beaded Sea Anemone
Zebra Anemone
Red Anemones on Reef
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Classification/Identification

• Anemones are cnidarians
• Members of the class Anthozoa (meaning flower
  animal)
• Stinging tentacles
• Radial symmetry
• Nerve net
• sessile

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Habitat

• Live in salt water environment
• Found in coastal/shallow waters (coral reefs) and
  in deep ocean waters as well
• Temperate and tropical areas worldwide
• Do not change location from where they first
  planted themselves unless sense that their
  environment is unstable

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Nervous system

• Very simple nervous and muscular system
• Decentralized nervous system that controls
  functions in order to maintain homeostaysis
• As well biochemical and physical responses to
  stimuli
• For example, if you were to touch an anemone the
  entire animal contracts, withdrawing all of its
  tentacles into the polyp

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Movement

• Usually have limited movement-as they are sessile
• However can move if feel threatened in
  environment by muscular movements and plant
  themselves in a new area with substrate (muscular
  foot)

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Feeding

• Uses nematocysts on tentacles to paralyze prey
• Tiny fish swim into tentacles
• After capturing food , brings it to its mouth
  and food is digested inside the digestive sac by
  enzymes
• Digestion is mostly extracellular
• Two way digestive tractUndigested food
  particles and wastes are eliminated through the
  mouth as well

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nematocysts

• Each one contains a small vesicle filled with
  toxins called actinoporins
• When the hair is touched mechanically triggers a
  cell explosion that injects poison into the prey
• This is why anemones have a sticky feeling

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Life cycle

• Dominant structure is polyp
• Are sessile so live attached to a substrate for
  life
• Reproduce sexually and asexually
• Sexually-Produce embryos that develop into
  planula larvae which settle and develop into
  adult polyps
• Asexually-regeneration from pieces of the polyps
  base

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Symbiosis

• Symbiosis is a mutually beneficial relationship
  between two different species
• Usually involves a mutual protection and or
  living habitat for each species
• Anemone live in harmony with clownfish, hermit
  crabs, and algae
• You can see this demonstrated in Finding Nemo!

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Exploitation

• Part of global trade in marine ornamentals
• 200 to 300 million dollar industry
• Usually collected from the wild as juveniles or
  adults
• Aquarium fishing activities significantly impact
  the populations of anemones
• Are able to live in captivity but not as long as
  they can in the wild