G. ventalina can be found in many environments and varying depths throughout the Caribbean and Bermuda reefs. Tidal streams exert a steady pull on the colonies and are, therefore, likely to detach only very weakly attached colonies. Sea Fans are similar to soft corals, however, they anchor themselves in mud or sand instead of attaching themselves to hard substrates. Gorgonia ventalina is a unique coral that grows in the shape of a fan and has a distinctive purple coloring, which is where it gained the common name “purple sea fan”. They consume plankton and require strong currents to carry their food. deep- sea fan Fan-shaped body of sediment that accumulates at the lower end of a submarine canyon, either at the foot of the continental slope or on the continental rise. The fans can be large, 1.5-1.8 m high and 1.2-1.5 m broad. Abstract. Color: The fans are purple, yellow or brownish in color. The fan mussel, Pinna nobilis (Linnaeus, 1758), is a bivalve endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, that lives half-buried in soft-bottom habitats, generally covered by seagrass meadows. Habitat: Restricted to the outer reefs and patch reefs to 30 m. Distribution: Very widespread from Bermuda south to Curacao. ×. They are invertebrates, marine animal structures of numerous tiny polyps, growing in a flat fan-like pattern, eventually reaching a large branching fan-shaped colony. Some Sea Fans require up to 8 inches of sand. It grows near the shore in shallow water in areas with strong wave action and on deeper outer reefs with strong currents down to a depth of about … There have been studies into the role that sea fans, including G. ventalina, have in the formation of coral reefs. Sea fans are found in strong tidal streams but most likely retract their polyps when current velocity gets too high for the polyps to retain food. Colonies … The sea fan can be found in inner reefs, and in parts of the ocean where sediment is present. The main branches are often purple and the fan is orientated at right angles to the current. Conclusions were the limestone inner structure provides some of the base where other corals may attach to form more colonies. Turbiditic systems appear to be intermediate between other energy rich habitats sustaining chemosynthesis in the deep sea, being locally less stable in terms of energy supply than cold seeps, limiting the number of cold-seep specialists able to colonize, but constituting a longer lived habitat than food falls. The purple sea fan is found in the western Atlantic and Caribbean, with a range extending from Bermuda and Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to Curaçao. Most people are surprised to learn that sea fans are still quite commonly seen on our shores. The northern sea fan (Swiftia pallida) and cup corals (Caryophyllia smithii), species which characterise the habitat, are predominantly found between depths of 20 m - 50 m, whilst sponges are more common in the deeper waters below. The coral favours locations with constant strong water currents and shallow water with a depth 10m or less (Colin, 1978). Turbidite fans therefore represent distinct deep sea habitats that contribute to … Sea Fans Facts and Species Information Taxonomy [Gorgonia] [Phylum: Cnidaria] [Class: Anthozoa] [Family: Gorgonacea ] Gorgonians are soft coral sea fans found in shallow water oceans. Cite this article. Large colonies may be seen on undisturbed intertidal reefs in the North. Family: Gorgoniidae. Divers may encounter large sea fans on our Southern islands. A Dictionary of Earth Sciences AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. But smaller ones may be seen even on Changi and East Coast Park. HABITAT AND ACTIVITY. Distribution and habitat. 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