Nippled sea fan

The nippled sea fan (Eunicella papillosa), is a species of gorgonian sea fan in the family Gorgoniidae.

Nippled sea fan
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Anthozoa
Order: Alcyonacea
Family: Gorgoniidae
Genus: Eunicella
Species:
E. papillosa
Binomial name
Eunicella papillosa
(Esper, 1797)[1]

Description

This fan is short and pale cream to orange in colour. It grows upright or in bushy masses, with irregular or frequent branches coming off the main basal stem. The branches are covered on all sides with many small bumps from which the polyps extend. It may grow up to 18 cm tall and have branches of 0.2 to 0.4 cm wide.[2]

Distribution

This sea fan is found only around the southern African coast from Lüderitz to Sodwana Bay in 1–360 m of water.

Ecology

This sea fan usually grows in areas sheltered from strong current. It is preyed upon by the whip fan nudibranch, which strongly resembles the feeding fan.[3]

References
  1. http://marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=213056 accessed 26 July 2013
  2. Branch, G.M., Branch, M.L, Griffiths, C.L. and Beckley, L.E. 2010. Two Oceans: a guide to the marine life of southern Africa ISBN 978-1-77007-772-0
  3. Jones, Georgina. A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula. SURG, Cape Town, 2008. ISBN 978-0-620-41639-9
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