Sandy sea creature with ‘transparent’ tentacles found off Spain. It’s a new species
Plunging into the water off the coast of Spain, scuba diving scientists ventured into a coastal cave. Along the ground, they noticed a yellow sea creature with dozens of tentacles.
It turned out to be a new species.
Researchers visited several sites in the western end of the Mediterranean Sea between 2020 and 2021 to survey marine life through a combination of scuba dives and remotely operated vehicles, according to a study published Feb. 8 in the peer-reviewed journal Marine Biodiversity.
Their searches focused on the widespread sea animal Parazoanthus axinellae, or the yellow cluster anemone, the study said. Despite their misleading name, yellow cluster anemones are not sea anemones but rather zoantharians, a related marine invertebrate that lives in colonies.
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During the dives, researchers noticed some zoantharians that looked like unusual yellow cluster anemones. Intrigued, they collected dozens of these unfamiliar animals and, after taking a closer look, realized they’d discovered a new species: Parazoanthus franciscae, or Francisca’s cluster anemone.
A photo shows the new species. Seen from afar, a colony of Francisca’s cluster anemones looks like a blanket of yellow flowers spread across the seafloor.
Seen up close, each polyp has a tube-like body and an opening ringed with dozens of “transparent” tentacles. These “sand-encrusted” polyps form “small groups embedded and assembled in a common tissue” of a single colony, the study said.
Francisca’s cluster anemones were found growing over sea sponges or “directly” on rocky cliffs, researchers said. They preferred “coastal caves and shaded places” at depths of about 10 to 150 feet.
Researchers said they named the new species after and in memory of Francisca Serrais Benavente, the “beloved wife” of co-author Oscar Ocaña and founder of a marine life foundation.
So far, Francisca’s cluster anemones have been found at several sites in the Alboran Sea, the western part of the Mediterranean Sea which borders Spain to the north and Morocco to the south, the study said.
The new species was identified by its DNA, preferred habitat, coloring, size, internal anatomy and other subtle physical features, the study said.
The research team included Alfredo Rosales Ruiz, Oscar Ocaña, Roberto de la Herrán, Rafael Navajas-Pérez, Carmelo Ruiz Rejón, Ander Congil Ross and Francisca Robles.
The analyses were performed within MESO_Alboran2 project, of the Museo del Mar de Ceuta. This project is developed with the collaboration of the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, through the Pleamar Programme, and is co-financed by the European Union through the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund.
This story was originally published February 21, 2025 at 9:38 AM with the headline "Sandy sea creature with ‘transparent’ tentacles found off Spain. It’s a new species."
