Ecological Physiology and Genetics of the Colonizing Actinian Haliplanella Luciae

Abstract

Since its presumed origin on the Pacific coast of Asia, Haliplanella luciae (Verrill) has become distributed throughout the northern hemisphere. The dispersal of the species has been effected through attachment to oysters shipped commercially (Verrill, 1898), transportation on ship bottoms (Stephenson, 1935), and attachment to floating seaweed (Williams, 1973a). Stephenson (1935) notes that the species may appear suddenly in a locality, flourish for a time, and then die out or disappear abruptly. It exhibits classic characteristics of a colonizing species.