The nippled sea fan ''Eunicella microthela'' (Lamouroux, 1816) previously known by the junior synonym ''Eunicella papillosa'' (Esper, 1797), is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of gorgonian sea fan in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Gorgoniidae Gorgoniidae is a family of soft corals, a member of the subclass Octocorallia in the phylum Cnidaria. Nearly all the genera and species are native to the east and west coasts of America. Characteristics Originally the members of the family Go ...

.McFadden, C.S.; Cordeiro, R.; Williams, G.; van Ofwegen, L. (2023). World List of Octocorallia. Eunicella papillosa (Esper, 1797). Accessed through: World Register of Marine Species at: https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=213056 on 2023-10-05

Description

This fan is short and pale cream to orange in colour. It grows upright or in bushy masses, with irregular or frequent branches coming off the main basal stem. The branches are covered on all sides with many small bumps from which the polyps extend. It may grow up to 18 cm tall and have branches of 0.2 to 0.4 cm wide.Branch, G.M., Branch, M.L, Griffiths, C.L. and Beckley, L.E. 2010. ''Two Oceans: a guide to the marine life of southern Africa''

Distribution

This sea fan is found only around the southern African coast from

Lüderitz Lüderitz is a town in the ǁKaras Region of southern Namibia. It lies on one of the least hospitable coasts in Africa. It is a port developed around Robert Harbour and Shark Island. Lüderitz had a population of 16,125 people in 2023. Th ...

Sodwana Bay Sodwana Bay is a bay in South Africa on the KwaZulu Natal north coast, between St. Lucia and Lake Sibhayi. It is in the Sodwana Bay National Park, and the Maputaland Marine Reserve, and is a popular recreational diving destination. The term i ...

in 1–360 m of water.

Ecology

This sea fan usually grows in areas sheltered from strong current. It is preyed upon by the

whip fan nudibranch ''Duvaucelia odhneri'', is a species of Dendronotida, dendronotid nudibranch. It is a marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusc in the family (biology), family Tritoniidae. The specific name ''odhneri'' is in honour of Swedish malacologist Nils H ...

, which strongly resembles the feeding fan.Jones, Georgina. ''A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula.'' SURG, Cape Town, 2008.

References

Gorgoniidae Corals described in 1797 {{octocorallia-stub