Giant Anemones are animals with long tentacles that often live in holes in the coral reef. These animals stick out their tentacles and wait for an unsuspecting fish to swim too close. Then the Giant Anemones will use their tentacles to grab the fish, kill it, and eat it.

Giant Anemones have many tentacles. The tentacles of the Giant Anemone in this picture were about 6 inches long. Notice that the tentacles are covered by tiny white dots. This pattern of dots reveals the stingers that cover these tentacles. These tiny stingers are used to paralyze and kill the fish the Anemones catch and eat.

Compare this Giant Anemone to the Solitary Anemones found in the tide pools near San Diego. Which is bigger, the Giant Anemone or the Solitary Anemone?

Learn more about the reefs of Bimini from the ReefNews CD-ROM, "Bimini: Jewel of the Gulf Stream." Order your own copy of this educational CD-ROM from the ReefNews Online Catalog.

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