Diversity and Distribution of Sea Anemones in India with Special Reference to Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Sea anemones are brightly coloured, classified under the phylum Cnidaria, inhabit coastal waters throughout the world, but are particularly abundant in tropical oceans. They are distributed in intertidal to deep oceans and live attached with rocks, sea floor, shells and some forms burrow in the mud or sand. They are radial symmetric with columnar body have a single body opening, mouth which is surrounded by tentacles. However, body shape of the sea anemones is often related to the habitat in which they live. Sea anemones are solitary polyps and are considerably larger and heavier than the polyps of hydrozoans (Barnes, 1982). There are over 1000 species of sea anemones reported worldwide.