| Urticinopsis antarctica | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Class: | Hexacorallia |
| Order: | Actiniaria |
| Family: | Actiniidae |
| Genus: | Urticinopsis |
| Species: | U. antarctica |
| Binomial name | |
| Urticinopsis antarctica | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
| |
Urticinopsis antarctica is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is found in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica.
Urticinopsis antarctica is a large species of sea anemone, with a column height of up to 120 mm (5 in), and numerous long slender tentacles. [2]
Urticinopsis antarctica is a common species in Antarctic and Subantarctic waters. It has been recorded at McMurdo Sound, the South Shetland Islands, Prydz Bay, the Cosmonauts Sea, the Haswell Islands in the Davis Sea, and the Weddell Sea. [2]
The waters under the ice packs around Antarctica show a marked zonation. U antarctica is found in Zone II, between 15 and 33 m (50 and 110 ft) deep, where it is one of the dominant sessile organisms, alongside various other sea anemones, the soft coral Alcyonium antarcticum , the stoloniferan Clavularia frankliniana and the hydroids Tubularia hodgsoni and Lampra parvula . Here U antarctica mostly feeds on sea urchins in the genus Sterechinus . [3]
It is also present in Zone III, deeper than 33 m (110 ft) and below the depth at which anchor ice forms. Here the seabed is characterised by a layer of sponge spicules and dead mollusc shells a metre or more thick, with living sponges growing on the surface. In this zone it preys on the various species of starfish found here, grazing on and feeding among the sponges, such as Diplasterias brucei . [4] Examination of the contents of the gastrovascular cavities of these sea anemones show that the diet can include sea urchins, starfish, sea cucumbers, brittle stars, crinoids, gastropod and bivalve molluscs, and small fish; also found in the stomach cavities, but completely undigested, were several amphipod crustaceans, and these are hypothesised to have been living there as commensals. [2]
An echinoderm is any member of the phylum Echinodermata of marine animals. The adults are recognizable by their radial symmetry, and include starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers, as well as the sea lilies or "stone lilies". Adult echinoderms are found on the sea bed at every ocean depth, from the intertidal zone to the abyssal zone. The phylum contains about 7,000 living species, making it the second-largest grouping of deuterostomes, after the chordates. Echinoderms are the largest phylum that has no freshwater or terrestrial members.
Sea urchins are spiny, globular echinoderms in the class Echinoidea. About 950 species of sea urchin live on the seabed of every ocean and inhabit every depth zone — from the intertidal seashore down to 5,000 metres. The spherical, hard shells (tests) of sea urchins are round and spiny, ranging in diameter from 3 to 10 cm. Sea urchins move slowly, crawling with tube feet, and also propel themselves with their spines. Although algae are the primary diet, sea urchins also eat slow-moving (sessile) animals. In the food chain, the predators who eat sea urchins are the sea otter and the starfish, the wolf eel, the triggerfish, and human beings.
McMurdo Sound is a sound in Antarctica. The sound, which extends about 55 kilometres long and wide, connects to the Ross Sea to the north, and to the Ross Ice Shelf cavity to the south via Haskell Strait. The strait is largely covered by the McMurdo Ice Shelf. The Royal Society Range rises from sea level to 4,205 metres on the western shoreline. Ross Island, an historic jumping-off point for polar explorers, designates the eastern boundary. The active volcano Mount Erebus at 3,794 metres dominates Ross Island. Antarctica's's largest scientific base, the United States' McMurdo Station, as well as the New Zealand Scott Base are on the southern shore of the island. Less than 10 percent of McMurdo Sound's shoreline is free of ice. It is the southernmost navigable body of water in the world.
The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore or seashore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide. This area can include several types of habitats with various species of life, such as seastars, sea urchins, and many species of coral with regional differences in biodiversity. Sometimes it is referred to as the littoral zone, although that can be defined as a wider region.
Marine invertebrates are the invertebrates that live in marine habitats. Invertebrate is a blanket term that includes all animals apart from the vertebrate members of the chordate phylum. Invertebrates lack a vertebral column, and some have evolved a shell or a hard exoskeleton. As on land and in the air, marine invertebrates have a large variety of body plans, and have been categorised into over 30 phyla. They make up most of the macroscopic life in the oceans.
Arvoredo Marine Biological Reserve is a Biological reserve off the coast of the Santa Catarina state, Brazil.
Parborlasia corrugatus is a proboscis worm in the family Cerebratulidae. This species of proboscis or ribbon worm can grow to 2 metres in length, and lives in marine environments down to 3,590 metres (11,780 ft). This scavenger and predator is widely distributed in cold southern oceans.
The sandy anemone is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is native to very shallow water round the coasts of southern Africa between Luderitz and Durban.
The Antarctic scallop is a species of bivalve mollusc in the large family of scallops, the Pectinidae. It was thought to be the only species in the genus Adamussium until an extinct Pliocene species was described in 2016. Its exact relationship to other members of the Pectinidae is unclear. It is found in the ice-cold seas surrounding Antarctica, sometimes at great depths.
Sterechinus neumayeri, the Antarctic sea urchin, is a species of sea urchin in the family Echinidae. It is found living on the seabed in the waters around Antarctica. It has been used as a model organism in the fields of reproductive biology, embryology, ecology, physiology and toxicology.
Crassadoma is a genus of rock scallops, marine bivalve molluscs in the family Pectinidae. It is monotypic, the only species being Crassadoma gigantea, the rock scallop, giant rock scallop or purple-hinge rock scallop. Although the small juveniles are free-swimming, they soon become sessile, and are cemented to the substrate. These scallops occur in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Labidiaster annulatus, the Antarctic Sun starfish or wolftrap starfish is a species of starfish in the family Heliasteridae. It is found in the cold waters around Antarctica and has a large number of slender, flexible rays.
The wildlife of Antarctica are extremophiles, having to adapt to the dryness, low temperatures, and high exposure common in Antarctica. The extreme weather of the interior contrasts to the relatively mild conditions on the Antarctic Peninsula and the subantarctic islands, which have warmer temperatures and more liquid water. Much of the ocean around the mainland is covered by sea ice. The oceans themselves are a more stable environment for life, both in the water column and on the seabed.
Diplasterias brucei is a species of starfish in the family Asteriidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean and Southern Ocean. It is a predator and scavenger and is unusual among starfish in that it broods its young.
Limatula hodgsoni is a species of bivalve mollusc in the family Limidae, the file shells or file clams. It is native to the seas around Antarctica.
Allantactis is a monotypic genus of sea anemones, and Allantactis parasitica is the only species in the genus. This sea anemone lives at bathyal depths in the North Atlantic Ocean and has a symbiotic relationship with a gastropod mollusc.
Paulasterias tyleri is a species of starfish in the family Paulasteriidae. It is found in deep water at hydrothermal vents in the Antarctic. It is the type species of the newly erected genus Paulasterias, the only other member of the genus being Paulasterias mcclaini.
Anasterias antarctica, commonly called the Cinderella starfish, is a species of starfish in the family Asteriidae. It is found in coastal waters in the Southern Ocean and around Antarctica.
Isotealia antarctica, the salmon anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is found in the southern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the waters around Antarctica. It is a filter feeder and opportunistic predator.
Tritoniella is a genus of sea slugs, specifically dendronotid nudibranchs. It is a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Tritoniidae.The genus was described in 1907 by the British diplomat and malacologist Charles Eliot.