On a lighter note --- More Tidepool Critters !!!

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The photo is of a colony of aggregating anemone. It has been a while since I posted about the tide pools and the creatures that live there. The anemones in the photo are an interesting group. First, they are the most abundant of all species of anemones on the rocky shores of the Pacific Northwest. And second; they have a unique ability when it comes to reproduction. Anemone’s get their color from a symbiotic relationship with a specific kind of algae. It grows inside the skin of the anemone where it does what plants do, photosynthesize sunlight into carbohydrates that the algae use and some is given to the anemone as well. Algae also produce oxygen, which the anemone takes in for its own use. As for reproduction, most anemones will spawn, sending gametes into the water column to combine with others to form a unique (or new) anemone that settles back to the bottom where they grow. But they can also reproduce by fusion, or by dividing a portion of themselves off to form a new *genetically identical” copy of itself. In fact, it isn’t unusual for there to be an entire colony of these identical anemones bunched together. Oh, note that at the top of the photo you can see several ball like things with bits of shell attached. The shells bits are for protection and the anemone will pick these up from the seafloor or catch them as they flow by pushed by the tides. They stick them to their body. This serves to protect very soft sides and to protect from the sun. They are balled up because as the tide goes out and exposes them, they suck in a gulp of seawater that keeps them from getting dried out, and allows them to take in oxygen (from the water). I am always amazed at the adaptations that animals make to help them survive their environment. (Photo is mine)