Description
Condylactis gigantea, also known as the Giant Caribbean Sea Anemone or Atlantic Anemone, is a large, columnar anemone found in shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea and western Atlantic Ocean. These anemones can be white, light blue, pink, orange, pale red, or light brown, with numerous tentacles, each often having a pink, scarlet, blue, or green-ringed tip. They can grow to be over 30 cm in diameter.
Key Features:
-
Size and Shape: Large, columnar body with a large diameter.
-
Color: Can be white, light blue, pink, orange, pale red, or light brown.
-
Tentacles: Numerous tentacles, often with colored tips.
-
Habitat: Shallow reefs, grass beds, and lagoons in the Caribbean and western Atlantic.
-
Diet: Carnivorous, feeding on small invertebrates, fish, shrimp, and zooplankton.
-
Reproduction: Dioecious (separate sexes) with a primary mating season in spring.
-
Defensive Mechanism: Possesses cnidocysts (stinging cells) on the tips of its tentacles.