Georgia-Pacific Cold Water Quest

Strawberry anemone

(Corynactis californica)

The strawberry anemone is found along the rocky shore of the eastern Pacific Ocean from British Columbia to the Baja Peninsula. It forms clusters of many individuals under rocky ledges or on shaded rocks, concrete pilings and legs of oil platforms.

The strawberry anemone is not a true anemone, although it superficially resembles one. It is a corallimorpharian, which is more closely related to stony corals, except that it lacks a calcareous exoskeleton. Its most common colors are red, crimson or pink. Its tentacles are transparent to white in color and have a swelling at their tip.

Look for the strawberry anemone in the smaller exhibits in the Cold Water Quest gallery.

Fun Facts

• The strawberry anemone is small. It only grows to be about an inch tall and an inch in diameter.
• This species reproduces by splitting longitudinally. This results in clusters of animals all the same color as the “parent” individual.
• This animal has a unique way of defeating efforts by adjacent anemones and coral to crowd it out. The strawberry anemone extrudes filaments from its mouth onto the competing animal, which causes the intruder to retreat or die.
• It is also known as the “club-tipped anemone” because of the bulb on the end of its tentacles.
• The strawberry anemone feeds on zooplankton.
• Download full fact sheet

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