White-Striped Anemone
Most marine life starts off as plankton, drifting in the current looking for a nice place to settle.
But it seems that everyone wants to eat them before they even get there. That includes the 'flowers of the sea'- Anemones.
If plankton drifts a little too close to an Anemone and brushes lightly against a tentacle, it triggers an attack. A harpoon-like filament is fired into the poor baby creature injecting a paralyzing neurotoxin. The helpless prey is then guided into the mouth by the tentacles.
If you think it couldn't get any worse for the plankton, you'd be wrong. The mouth of an Anemone doubles up as an anus. It is a truly horrible way to go.
The White Striped Anemone is one of Sydney's most common and easily recognisable Anemones.
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE WHITE-STRIPED ANEMONE
A few more facts from the people that know more about the marine life of Sydney than anyone else.
More info from the
Australian Museum