# Plumose Anemones (*metridium*)

Plumose anemones are colorful sea creatures that look like fluffy flowers underwater! They use their tentacles to catch tiny fish and plankton for dinner.

- **Category:** [Invertebrate](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/invertebrate)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Snaps:** 1
- **Habitat:** Plumose anemones live in the ocean, often attached to rocks and other surfaces in shallow waters.
- **Also known as:** fluffy anemone, garden anemone

![Plumose Anemones](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Metridium_senile_1.jpg&width=800)

Photo: Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0 · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Metridium_senile_1.jpg)

## Appearance

The Plumose Anemones has a tall, columnar body topped with a dense, feathery crown of numerous, short tentacles. Its colors range from white, cream, and orange to brown, often resembling a fluffy cauliflower or plume underwater.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Arthropoda
- **Class:** Anthozoa
- **Order:** Actiniaria
- **Family:** Metridiidae
- **Genus:** Metridium

## Interesting facts

- A plumose anemone can clone itself, creating exact copies!
- Even without a brain, these anemones can feel and react!
- Some plumose anemones thrive in freezing polar waters!
- They can slowly slide across rocks, finding better feeding spots!

## Special abilities

- **Micro-Feeder:** Plumose Anemones can capture tiny food particles from ocean currents because of their vast network of delicate, feathery tentacles.
- **Anchor Grip:** Plumose Anemones has a strong, sticky foot that helps them cling tightly to surfaces, even enduring powerful underwater currents.
- **Shape Shifter:** Plumose Anemones can retract their tentacles and column because of specialized muscles that help them hide quickly from danger.
- **Rapid Repair:** Plumose Anemones can regrow lost body parts because of special cells that help them recover from injury or damage.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 10-100 cm
- **Lifespan:** 20-100 years
- **Tentacle Count:** 500-1000
- **Column Diameter Cm:** 2-15 cm

## Diet & Feeding

Plumose Anemones are filter feeders, grabbing tiny food from the water.

- **Primary Foods:** phytoplankton, zooplankton, detritus, copepods, amphipods
- **Foraging Method:** Filter feeding

## Ecological connections

- **Eats:** [Leather Star](https://www.snappit.app/explore/leather-star) (*Dermasterias imbricata*) — A known predator of anemones.
- **Eats:** Shaggy Sea Slug (*Aeolidia papillosa*) — This nudibranch feeds on various anemone species.

## Traits

- [Solitary](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/solitary): Solitary animals live alone for most of their lives, only interacting with others for mating or parental care.
- [Colorful](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/colorful): Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.
- [Filter Feeder](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/filter-feeder): Filter feeders obtain nutrients by straining suspended food particles and small organisms from water.
- [Aquatic](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/aquatic): Aquatic habitats encompass environments where organisms live predominantly in water, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and wetlands.
- [Marine](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/marine): Marine habitats encompass all saltwater environments of the Earth's oceans, supporting an immense diversity of aquatic life.

## Collections

- [Invertebrates](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/invertebrates)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

No special safety notes yet.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Plumose Anemones?

Look for fins, arms, tentacles, shells and body symmetry. Underwater light shifts colors, so structure and markings usually matter more than shade. Sea Creature Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Plumose Anemones?

10-100 cm

### How long does Plumose Anemones live?

20-100 years

### What does Plumose Anemones eat?

Plumose Anemones are filter feeders, grabbing tiny food from the water.

### Where is Plumose Anemones usually found?

Plumose anemones live in the ocean, often attached to rocks and other surfaces in shallow waters.

### How does Plumose Anemones hunt?

Filter feeding

### How many tentacles does Plumose Anemones have?

500-1000

### What is the column Diameter Cm of Plumose Anemones?

2-15 cm

## Where to spot

- [Bellevue Avenue Historic District](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/bellevue-avenue-historic-district) — Rhode Island, US · Historic District
- [Ocean Drive Historic District](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/ocean-drive-historic-district) — US · Historic District
- [Jarstad Park](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/jarstad-park) — Washington, US · Park

[View all places to see Plumose Anemones](https://www.snappit.app/guides/where-to-see/plumose-anemones)

## More Invertebrate

- [Coral](https://www.snappit.app/explore/coral)
- [Crab Spider](https://www.snappit.app/explore/crab-spider) (*Mecaphesa asperata*)
- [Garden Spider](https://www.snappit.app/explore/garden-spider) (*Araneus diadematus*)
- [Brown Recluse Spider](https://www.snappit.app/explore/brown-recluse-spider) (*Loxosceles reclusa*)

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Source: [Plumose Anemones: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/plumose-anemones)