Actinia fragacea

Last updated

Actinia fragacea
Actinia fragacea (Strawberry Anemone).JPG
Strawberry anemone (Actinia fragacea), the lower shore line at low tide, Lundy, Bristol Channel, UK.
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Hexacorallia
Order: Actiniaria
Family: Actiniidae
Genus: Actinia
Species:
A. fragacea
Binomial name
Actinia fragacea
Tugwell, 1856

Actinia fragacea, commonly known as the strawberry anemone, [1] is a species of sea anemone of the order Actiniaria, that occurs from Norway to Africa, including adjacent islands (the Azores, Canary Islands, and Cape Verde) and the Mediterranean. It is generally found on rocks of the lower shoreline and depths up to 8–10 metres (26–33 ft).

Contents

Description

The strawberry anemone has a smooth column which is typically red or dark red, with many greenish spots. The tentacles are usually red or purplish. Actinia fragacea is similar in form to the beadlet anemone (Actinia equina) and was at one time considered to be a variant of that species, however, it is typically larger, measuring up to 100 millimetres (3.9 in) across the base. It also has a conspicuous ring of pale blue, red, pink, or white spots known as "acrorhagi" around the inside of the top of the column. [2]

Distribution and habitat

The strawberry anemone is found in the northeastern and eastern Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from Norway, England, Scotland, and Ireland to the Mediterranean Sea and North Africa, including the Azores, the Canary Islands, and Cape Verde. It occurs on the lower shore and sublittoral zone at depths generally less than 10 metres (33 ft). It is generally attached to rocks and boulders but is sometimes semi-immersed in sand. [3]

A Californian species Corynactis californica shares the same common name, as does a southern African species, Corynactis annulata , and Urticina lofotensis , which is found in the North Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific coast of North America.

Ecology

Little is known of the reproduction of this species but it has separate sexes and has an oviparous system of reproduction. It does not seem to brood its young. [2] A particularly famous example of beadlet sea anemone, which was possibly a strawberry anemone, was that of "Granny" which was found on Scotland's east coast by John Dalyell in 1828 and who published a detailed early study of its behaviour.7. [4] [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macaronesia</span> Archipelagos off the Atlantic coasts of Africa and Europe

Macaronesia is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Each archipelago is made up of a number of Atlantic oceanic islands, which are formed by seamounts on the ocean floor whose peaks have risen above the ocean's surface. Some of the Macaronesian islands belong to Portugal, some belong to Spain, and the rest belong to Cape Verde. Politically, the islands belonging to Portugal and Spain are part of the European Union. Geologically, Macaronesia is part of the African tectonic plate. Some of its islands – the Azores – are situated along the edge of that plate at the point where it abuts the Eurasian and North American plates.

Cape Bojador is a headland on the west coast of Western Sahara, at 26° 07' 37"N, 14° 29' 57"W, as well as the name of the large nearby town with a population of 42,651. The name of the surrounding province also derives its name from the cape.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergeant major (fish)</span> Species of fish

The sergeant major or píntano is a species of damselfish. It grows to a maximum length of about 22.9 centimetres (9.0 in).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UTC−01:00</span> Time in Cape Verde, the Azores and east Greenland

UTC−01:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of −01:00.

Strawberry anemone may refer to several taxa of sea anemones:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beadlet anemone</span> Species of cnidarian, a sea anemone

The beadlet anemone is a common sea anemone found on rocky shores around all coasts of the British Isles. Its range extends to the rest of Western Europe and the Mediterranean Sea, and along the Atlantic coast of Africa as far south as South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuckoo wrasse</span> Species of fish

The cuckoo wrasse is a species of wrasse native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean from Norway to Senegal, including the Azores and Madeira. It is also found in the Mediterranean Sea. They occur in weedy, rocky areas mostly between 40 and 80 m. This species is an occasional food fish for local populations but is also popular as a game fish. It is also a popular fish for display in public aquaria.

<i>Corynactis annulata</i> Species of sea anemone

Corynactis annulata, or the strawberry anemone, is a bright pink colonial anthozoan similar in body form to sea anemones and scleractinian stony corals. This species is a solitary animal of the order Corallimorpharia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African coral reefs</span> Coral reefs in Africa

African coral reefs are the coral reefs which are present in Africa. Most are found along the eastern and southern coasts of Africa. The east coast corals extend from the Red Sea to Madagascar in the south, and are an important resource for the fishersmen of Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Madagascar. Some cold-water reefs are also found along the northwestern part of Africa, i.e. near the Azores, Madeira, Canary islands and Cape Verde

<i>Actinia</i> Genus of sea anemones

Actinia is a genus of sea anemones in the family Actiniidae. Actinia display a rare form of heteromorphosis in which a cut inflicted on a specimen can develop into a second mouth.

<i>Metridium senile</i> Species of sea anemone

Metridium senile, or frilled anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Metridiidae. As a member of the genus Metridium, it is a type of plumose anemone and is found in the seas off north-western Europe and both the east and west coasts of North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black scorpionfish</span> Species of fish

The black scorpionfish, also known as the European scorpionfish or small-scaled scorpionfish, is a venomous scorpionfish, common in marine subtropical waters. It is widespread in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean from the British Isles to the Azores and Canary Islands, near the coasts of Morocco, in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Small red scorpionfish</span> Species of fish

Small red scorpionfish is a venomous Scorpionfish, common in marine subtropical waters. It is widespread in the Eastern Atlantic from the Bay of Biscay to Senegal, Madeira, Azores and the Canary Islands, including the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.

Actinia bermudensis, the red, maroon or stinging anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae.

<i>Actinia mediterranea</i> Species of sea anemone

Actinia mediterranea is a common sea anemone found on rocky shores all along its range in the Mediterranean Sea, Portuguese shores and the coast of north western Africa. Because of its strong resemblance with Actinia equina, they are often confused and share certain common names as Beadlet anemone.

Anthopleura thallia, commonly known as the glaucous pimplet, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is found in shallow water in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

<i>Actinia striata</i> Species of sea anemone

Actinia striata is a species of sea anemone endemic to the Mediterranean Sea.

<i>Corynactis viridis</i> Species of sea anemone

Corynactis viridis, the jewel anemone, is a brightly coloured anthozoan similar in body form to a sea anemone or a scleractinian coral polyp, but in the order Corallimorpharia. It is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea and was first described by the Irish naturalist George Allman in 1846.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Granny (sea anemone)</span> Celebrated long-lived 19th-century specimen

Granny was the affectionate name eventually given to a beadlet sea anemone, Actinia equina, which in 1828 was taken from a rocky shore at North Berwick in Scotland by an amateur naturalist, John Dalyell. During her long life through the Victorian era, she was cared for by a series of Edinburgh naturalists. Long outliving Dalyell, this sea anemone lived alone in a jar where she gave birth to several hundred offspring before her death in 1887.

References

  1. David Chapman (2008). Exploring the Cornish Coast. Penzance: Alison Hodge. p. 19. ISBN   9780906720561.
  2. 1 2 J.D. Fish (6 December 2012). A Student's Guide to the Seashore. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 113–. ISBN   978-94-011-5888-6.
  3. "Strawberry anemone - Actinia fragacea". MarLIN. Retrieved 2015-08-18.
  4. Swinney, Geoffrey N. (October 2007). "Granny (c. 1821–1887), 'a zoological celebrity'". Archives of Natural History. 34 (2): 219–228. doi:10.3366/anh.2007.34.2.219. ISSN   1755-6260.
  5. Dalyell, John Graham (1848). Rare and Remarkable Animals of Scotland, represented from Living Subjects (Volume Second). London: John Van Voorst.