Download Sea Anemones

Sea Anemones
Beaded Sea Anemone
Zebra Anemone
Red Anemones on Reef
Classification/Identification
• Anemones are
cnidarians
• Members of the class
Anthozoa (meaning
“flower animal”)
• Stinging tentacles
• Radial symmetry
• Nerve net
• sessile
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
Nervous system
• Very simple nervous and muscular system
• Decentralized nervous system that controls
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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
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)
Feeding
• Uses nematocysts on tentacles to paralyze prey
• Tiny fish swim into tentacles
• After capturing food , brings it to its mouth and
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food is digested inside the digestive sac by
enzymes
Digestion is mostly extracellular
Two –way digestive tract…Undigested food
particles and wastes are eliminated through the
mouth as well
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
Life cycle
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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
polyp’s base
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!
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