Both kinds of tentacles have specialized stinging cells, but they are used for different purposes. Rows of slender feeding tentacles circle the central oral disc while thicker, blunt-tipped fighting tentacles form a ring around the outer perimeter. These appendages are actually two different kinds of tentacles, each designed for a deadly mission: to sting and poison. But don’t be fooled by their delicate appearance. Aggregating anemones often live in orderly colonies, each member graced with rows of beautiful appendages that sway and lift in the current. Such an unusual creature inspires us to wonder how it sustains itself, especially since it spends most of its life anchored in one place. Although they can move in some circumstances, anemones typically spend their lives in one place enjoying the company of their own kind. If the beach is a suitable habitat, they might be found near the zero tide height, or even somewhat higher than that.Įarly in life, anemones anchor themselves to a firm substrate by secreting adhesive proteins, similar to the glue of a barnacle. Unlike most other local anemones, you don’t have to wait for extremely low tides to find them. But with a little investigating, it is easy to identify this creature as the aggregated anemone ( Anthopleura elegantissima), a common tide pool animal found plastered along the tidal shores throughout the Salish Sea. Unlike any known land species, are these peculiar globs a type of marine plant or fungus? Are they mysterious creatures of the sea? Or better yet…are they some curious combination of both plant and animal?Īt first glance, this low tide phenomenon could be a marine version of sprawling ground cover. Shoreline boulders, tide pools and dripping piers are quilted with dark sea green splotches glistening with slime. It’s a warm, late summer afternoon and the tide is low.
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