Stichodactylidae is a family of

sea anemone Sea anemones are a group of predation, predatory marine invertebrates of the order (biology), order Actiniaria. Because of their colourful appearance, they are named after the ''Anemone'', a terrestrial flowering plant. Sea anemones are classifi ...

s that contains the

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

''Stichodactyla'' (carpet anemones) and ''Heteractis''. These sea anemones exclusively reside within the shallow waters of the tropical

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

area and are in the main family of sea anemones that hosts several varieties of

clownfish Clownfish or anemonefish are fishes from the subfamily Amphiprioninae in the family Pomacentridae. Thirty species of clownfish are recognized: one in the genus ''Premnas'', while the remaining are in the genus ''Amphiprion''. In the wild, th ...

es. Most sea anemone species are harmless to humans, but at least some ''Stichodactyla'' are highly venomous and their sting may cause

anaphylactic shock Anaphylaxis is a serious, potentially fatal allergic reaction and medical emergency that is rapid in onset and requires immediate medical attention regardless of use of emergency medication on site. It typically causes more than one of the follow ...

and organ failure (notably

acute liver failure Acute liver failure is the appearance of severe complications rapidly after the first signs (such as jaundice) of liver disease, and indicates that the liver has sustained severe damage (loss of function of 80–90% of liver cells). The complicati ...

). In contrast, the venom of ''Heteractis '' has shown potential in treatment of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

Discovery

Collingwood C. first discovered ''Stichodactylidae'' back in 1868 after taking note on the existence of gigantic sea-anemones in the China Sea, containing quasi-parasitic fish.

Genera and species

The following species are recognized within the family Stichodactylidae: *Genus ''Heteractis'' **''

Heteractis aurora ''Heteractis aurora'' is a species of sea anemone in the family Stichodactylidae. Taxonomy Common names for ''H. aurora'' include beaded sea anemone, aurora host anemone, sand anemone, carpet anemone, flat anemone, corn anemone, Ritteri anem ...

'' **

Sebae anemone The sebae anemone (''Heteractis crispa''), also known as leathery sea anemone, long tentacle anemone, or purple tip anemone, is a species of sea anemone belonging to the family Stichodactylidae and native to the Indo-Pacific area. It was firs ...

(''Heteractis crispa'') **''

Heteractis magnifica ''Heteractis magnifica'', also known by the common names magnificent sea anemone or Ritteri anemone, is a species of sea anemone belonging to the Stichodactylidae family native to the Indo-Pacific area. Description The magnificent sea anemone is ...

'' **''

Heteractis malu ''Heteractis malu'', also known as the malu anemone, delicate sea anemone or white sand anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Stichodactylidae. Description This anemone has stout, sparse tentacles, almost always under 40mm in leng ...

'' *Genus ''Stichodactyla'' (carpet anemones) **'' Stichodactyla gigantea'' **''

Stichodactyla haddoni ''Stichodactyla haddoni'', commonly known as Haddon's sea anemone, is a species of sea anemone belonging to the family Stichodactylidae. It is found in the Indo-Pacific area. Description ''S. haddoni'' is characterized by a folded oral disc t ...

'' **''

Stichodactyla helianthus ''Stichodactyla helianthus'', commonly known as sun anemone, is a sea anemone of the family Stichodactylidae. ''Helianthus'' stems from the Greek words ἡλιος (meaning sun), and ἀνθος, meaning flower. ''S. helianthus'' is a large, gr ...

'' **'' Stichodactyla mertensii'' **'' Stichodactyla tapetum''

Gallery

Image:Stapetum.1.jpg, ''Stichodactyla tapetum'' File:Heteractis_aurora_timor.jpg, ''Heteractis aurora'' File:Sea anemone - Tokyo aquarium - Aug 14 2021.webm, Stichodactylidae

References

Actinioidea Taxa named by Angelo Andres {{Actiniaria-stub