Alcyonacea

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Alcyonacea

Scientific Classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Cnidaria Class: Anthozoa Order: Alcyonacea
Families
Suborder: Alcyoniina Alcyoniidae Nephtheidae Nidaliidae Paralcyoniidae Xeniidae Suborder: Calcaxonia Chrysogorgiidae Ellisellidae Ifalukellidae Isididae Primnoidae Suborder: Holaxonia Acanthogorgiidae Gorgoniidae Keroeididae Plexauridae Suborder: Protoalcyonaria Haimeidae Taiaroidae Suborder: Scleraxonia Anthothelidae Briareidae Coralliidae Melithaeidae Paragorgiidae Parisididae Subergorgiidae Suborder: Stolonifera Clavulariidae Coelogorgiidae Cornulariidae Pseudogorgiidae Tubiporidae Suborder: Incertae sedis Dendrobrachiidae

The Alcyonacea are soft corals, which are a suborder of alcyonaria. They are usually attached to rocks or seaweed and are firm. The scientific classification brake down is as follows: kingdom animalia, phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, and the order is Alcyonacea. The following are the families: Alcyoniina, Calcaxonia, Holaxonia, Protoalcyonaria, Scleraxonia, Stolonifera, and Incertae sedis. That is the list of the suborders under the families. The soft corals are members of the stinging-celled animals.

1 Anatomy
2 Reproduction
3 Ecology
4 Gallery
5 Related References
6 See Also

Anatomy

This is the anatomy of a coral polyp

The regular octocoral polyp has a cylindrical columnar body ending in a mouth and is surrounded by eight pinnate tentacles. The inner anatomy is very ancient with a large stomach and only one opening which is the mouth. Through a nervous network is how the colonies of polyps communicate while exchanging food and information. Gorgonin is the protein that the horny axis is mainly composed. Coenenchyme is the colonial tissue in which the skeleton is covered by. These are the make-ups of the sea fan that is another type of soft coral.[1]

Reproduction

Brain coral spawning - although not a soft coral the behavior is similar.

Alcyonacea reproduce asexually by budding and fragmentation and sexually via egg and sperm production. If you are looking and cutting and grafting you could think of them to be artificially propagated. It could still re-grow and live its own life if you broke off a piece and glued it to a hard substance.

Ecology

The soft corals are passive filter feeders that are dominating and prefer the shaded habitat. The corals polyp tentacles make it possible for it to collect particles from the water that is just floating about. One of the defense mechanisms that it has is its nematocysts, which are the stinging cells that paralyze its motile prey. Soft corals have few enemies. Fish, such as the butterflyfish, and mollusks will tend to chew on them, but do not have a massively damaging effect on the corals. The main reason you see nothing usually growing on corals is that they are toxic to some species. The chemical effects that they can have on other life forms are call terpenoids and that is basically a poison to harm others.[2] [3]