sea fan, colonial marine animal forming erect, flattened, branching colonies in tropical and subtropical waters. Colonies may be several feet high and are often colorful, with purples, reds, and yellows predominating. The individuals, or polyps (see polyp and medusa polyp and medusa, names for the two body forms, one nonmotile and one typically free swimming, found in the aquatic invertebrate phylum Cnidaria (the coelenterates).
..... Click the link for more information. ), have eight feathery tentacles and feed on plankton organisms. Sea fans are classified in the phylum Cnidaria Cnidaria (nīdâr`ēə) or Coelenterata
..... Click the link for more information. , class Anthozoa, order Gorgonacea.
Any of about 500 coral species (genus Gorgonia) especially abundant in shallow waters along the Atlantic coasts of Florida, Bermuda, and the West Indies. Polyps grow colonially in a flat, fanlike pattern. Each polyp has some multiple of six tentacles, which it spreads out to form a plankton-catching net. An internal skeleton supports all branches of the colony. The living tissues (often red, yellow, or orange) entirely cover the skeleton. The fan-shaped colonies usually grow across the current, increasing their ability to ensnare prey. All species grow to about 2 ft (60 cm) high.
..... Click the link for more information. ), have eight feathery tentacles and feed on plankton organisms. Sea fans are classified in the phylum Cnidaria Cnidaria (nīdâr`ēə) or Coelenterata
..... Click the link for more information. , class Anthozoa, order Gorgonacea.
sea fan
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Sea fan
(credit: Douglas Faulkner)
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