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| cnidarians text index | photo index |
| Phylum Cnidaria |
| Large
'hairy' cnidarians How to tell them apart? updated Oct 08 |
| Several large animals (50cm and above) covered with 'hairy' or 'furry' stuff are sometimes confused for one another. Here's more on how to tell them apart. |
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Sea
anemone
Order Actiniaria |
Leathery
soft coral
Order Alcyonacea |
Anemone
hard coral
Order Sclerectina |
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A
sea anemone is usually
a single animal. |
A
leathery coral is usually
a colony of many tiny animals. |
A
hard coral is usually
a colony of many tiny animals. |
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The
sea anemone has
a central mouth. |
The
leathery coral colony does not have a central mouth. The leathery
tissue is shared by the tiny polyps.
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The
hard coral colony does not have a central mouth. The hard skeleton
is created by the tiny polyps.
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The
'hairy' things on the disk
are tentacles. |
The
'hairy' things are actually
tiny polyps, each with a tiny central mouth and tentacles. |
The
'hairy' things are actually
tiny polyps, each with a tiny central mouth and tentacles. |
More comparisons
These are some large sea anemones with a close up look at their tentacles.
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These are soft corals with a close up look at their polyps.
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These are some hard corals with long polyps or tentacles.
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how to tell apart
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