Distribution data supplied by the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS). To interrogate UK data visit the NBN Atlas.Map Help
Researched by | Jaret Bilewitch | Refereed by | This information is not refereed |
Authority | (Marion, 1882) | ||
Other common names | - | Synonyms | - |
A sea anemone with a thick, muscular, column with limited contraction, and a hemispherical base. The base typically clutches a ball of mud in order to anchor the anemone in soft seabeds. The species can reach 12 cm in height and 8 cm in diameter when fully expanded. The lower column (scapus) is covered with tubercles that tend to form 12 longitudinal rows and which terminate at the upper column (scapulus) as a ring of 12 prominent warts. The upper scapulus has 12 pairs of longitudinal ridges, each terminating at a scapal wart. The anemone has 96 tentacles contained in 5 cycles, with those of the inner 4 having a swelling at their base. The colour is highly variable. The tentacles may be white, red, brown or intermediate shades and often have longitudinal stripes. The column is coloured dirty white, sometimes with red or green tinges.
A sublittoral species recorded from the west coasts of the British Isles and the North Sea.
Found in the North East Atlantic from Norway and the Shetlands to the Mediterranean and north-west Africa, and recorded of the north-east coasts of South America (Stephensen, 1935; Manuel, 1988).
Actinauge richardi stabilizes itself by invaginating its column to enclose a ball of sediment at its base although it is also capable of normal attachment on stones or shells (Manuel, 1988).
Manuel, R.L., 1988. British Anthozoa. Synopses of the British Fauna (New Series) (ed. D.M. Kermack & R.S.K. Barnes). The Linnean Society of London [Synopses of the British Fauna No. 18.]. DOI https://doi.org/10.1002/iroh.19810660505
Stephenson, T.A., 1935. The British Sea Anemones, vol. 2. London: Ray Society.
NBN (National Biodiversity Network) Atlas. Available from: https://www.nbnatlas.org.
OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System), 2023. Global map of species distribution using gridded data. Available from: Ocean Biogeographic Information System. www.iobis.org. Accessed: 2023-03-30
This review can be cited as:
Last Updated: 01/08/2018