Painted Anemone
Scientific Name: Urticina grebelnyi
Category: other
Brief Description
A colorful marine predatory animal that looks like a flower, often found attached to rocks in tide pools.
Characteristics
Thick, muscular column that is typically bright red or mottled with red, green, or white. It has short, blunt tentacles and the column is often covered in small bits of shell or gravel that stick to specialized suction-cup-like spots called verrucae.
Habitat
Intertidal zones, rocky shores, and tide pools under kelp canopies.
When to Find It
Visible year-round, best observed during low tide events.
Conservation Status
N/A
Ecological Role
An important predator in tide pool ecosystems, feeding on small crustaceans, mollusks, and occasionally small fish or dislodged urchins.
Easily Confused With
Christmas Anemone (Urticina crassicornis), which usually lacks the sticky shell fragments on its column, and the Northern Red Anemone (Urticina felina).
Observation Tips
Look for them in deep tide pools or crevices during negative low tides. Avoid touching them as their stinging cells (nematocysts) can cause skin irritation in some people and the anemone is delicate.
Interesting Facts
This species was formerly grouped with Urticina crassicornis but was distinguished as its own species. They can live for many decades, and their sticky 'armor' of shell fragments helps prevent desiccation and reflects harsh sunlight during low tide.
User Notes
What is that big red anenome called, found on a washington state beach