Magnificent sea anemone

Scientific name : Heteractis magnifica

Large sea anemone, up to 1 m diameter, very distinctive. The oral disc is densely covered with finger shaped tentacles, long up to 8 cm, with rounded or slightly swollen tip. Tentacle colour: green or brownish. The column has bright colour, purple, green, red or brown, with verrucae arranged in longitudinal rows. The column can contract and close almost completely in a ball shape.
It is difficult to confound, for sure the more distinctive anemone species. Compared with Heteractis crispa its tentacles have more rounded tip. Possible confusion by size with Stichodactyla mertensii, that has much shorter tentacles. Entacmaea quadricolor can be confused only when its tentacles are not inflated.

Associated organisms
With zooxanthellae. It lives in obligate symbiosis with different anemone fish species, in our area Amphiprion ocellaris, Amphiprion clarkii, Amphiprion perideraion, Amphiprion melanopus. It can have other commansals, like Dascyllus trimaculatus and different shrimp species (For example Periclimenes sarasvati and Periclimenes ornatus).