Appointment with Dr Anemone

It seems that marine-life could hold the key to improving many aspects of human health. Which is fine as long as the creatures we dive to see don’t have to be sacrificed in the process, says LISA COLLINS. They might not have to be

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ALMOST EVERYBODY LOVES anemonefish. The cute little fella depicted in Disney’s Finding Nemo brings a smile and sense of childhood innocence to us.

Darting about constantly between anemone tentacles, anemonefish live symbiotically with an anemone, providing tiny particles of food for their host while their anemones provide protection in their stinging tentacles.

Anemonefish have over time become immune to the poison that the anemones produce. It is thought that they go through a period of acclimation during which they obtain protection from the stinging tentacles through a protective membrane that covers the whole of their bodies.

Attaching to the coral reef and rocks on the bottom of the ocean by an adhesive foot, anemones can be found singularly on many reefs around the world, but occasionally can be seen in large aggregations, such as at Anemone Thila in the Maldives.

Anemones can be as small as 5mm and can grow as big as 2m. They can have anything from a few tentacles up to a couple of hundred, and these are often seen emerging from brightly coloured mantles. The mantles can be spread so wide that they can hardly be seen, or can be closed so that only a few tentacles protrude from them.

Anemones are found mostly in tropical waters, but some have adapted themselves to cooler waters around the world. They generally stay in the same spot for the duration of their long lives – 60-80 years. They will only detach if attacked.