''Heteractis aurora'' is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
sea anemone in the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
Stichodactylidae.
Taxonomy
Common names for ''H. aurora'' include beaded sea anemone, aurora host anemone, sand anemone, carpet anemone, flat anemone, corn anemone, Ritteri anemone, saddle tip anemone, adhesive sea anemone, and the white beaded anemone.
Description
Both the tentacles and oral disc of ''H. aurora'' are brown or purplish. The tentacles reach 50 mm in length, may be sticky when touched, and can have tips of a magenta colouration. The longer tentacles contain swellings. These appear on only on a single side, or almost entirely surrounding the tentacle, giving the appearance of beads on a string. A maximum of 20 such swellings may occur on any single tentacle.
This species has a broad, flattened oral disc reaching 250 mm wide, and may have white or brown markings that radiate from the centre, and even continue up and along the tentacles.
Distribution and habitat
''H. aurora'' occurs in
Micronesia
Micronesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, consisting of about 2,000 small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It has a close shared cultural history with three other island regions: the Philippines to the west, Polynesia to the east, and ...
as well as in
Melanesia
Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea.
The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Va ...
to
East Africa. It is also present in the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
, and in
Australia to the
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yona ...
. This species lives among coral, and along rocky reef edges and on slopes, normally in areas with strong currents. They attach themselves to a surface, and remain partially buried in sediment or sand, When threatened, they may retract entirely out of view into the substrate.
Ecology
''H. aurora'' hosts 7 species of anemonefish as symbionts:
* ''
Amphiprion akindynos'' – Barrier reef anemonefish
*
''A. allardi'' – Allard's anemonefish
*
''A. bicinctus'' – Two-band anemonefish
*
''A. clarkii'' - Clark's anemonefish
*
''A. chrysogaster'' - Mauritian anemonefish
*
''A. chrysopterus'' – Orange-fin anemonefish
*
''A. tricinctus'' – Three-band anemonefish
The relationship between anemonefish and their host sea anemones is highly
nested
''Nested'' is the seventh studio album by Bronx-born singer, songwriter and pianist Laura Nyro, released in 1978 on Columbia Records.
Following on from her extensive tour to promote 1976's ''Smile'', which resulted in the 1977 live album '' Seas ...
in structure. With 7 species of hosted anemonefish, ''H. aurora'' is a generalist anemone, however it is considered a nursery anemone as, for reasons unknown, sexually mature fish are rarely hosted by ''H. aurora''.
A number of other species are associated with ''H. aurora'', however the relationship is
commensal
Commensalism is a long-term biological interaction (symbiosis) in which members of one species gain benefits while those of the other species neither benefit nor are harmed. This is in contrast with mutualism, in which both organisms benefit fro ...
rather than
mutual as the anemone does not appear to benefit from the association. These species are
*
porcelain crab
Porcelain crabs are decapod crustaceans in the widespread family Porcellanidae, which superficially resemble true crabs. They have flattened bodies as an adaptation for living in rock crevices. They are delicate, readily losing limbs when attack ...
s
* Shrimp from the
Periclimenes
''Periclimenes'', commonly known as glass shrimp or cleaner shrimp, is a commensal and often symbiotic genus of semi-transparent shrimp within the family Palaemonidae. Species of this large genus feature a wide variety of coloration and patterns, ...
genus
*
Threespot dascyllus
Gallery
Image:Beaded Sea Anenome with shrimp.JPG, ''H. aurora'' with shrimp & anemonefish
Image:Heteractis aurora timor.jpg, ''Amphiprion clarkii'' (Clark's anemonefish) with ''H. aurora'', Timor
Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...
Image:Heteractis aurora, Panglao.jpg, ''H. aurora'', Panglao Island
Panglao is an island in the north Bohol Sea, located in the Central Visayas region of the Visayas island group, in the south-central Philippines.
Geography
The island has an area of . It is within Bohol Province, and comprises two municipalit ...
Image:Heteractis aurora.jpg, Crab & anemonefish with ''H. aurora''
Image:Clark's Anemonefish (Amphiprion clarkii) in Beaded Sea Anemone (Heteractis aurora) (8455438417).jpg, ''Amphiprion clarkii'' (Clark's anemonefish) in ''H. aurora''
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1528660
Stichodactylidae
Animals described in 1833
Taxa named by Jean René Constant Quoy
Taxa named by Joseph Paul Gaimard
Cnidarians of the Indian Ocean
Cnidarians of the Pacific Ocean