Sea anemones (Anthozoa: Actiniaria) from the coast of Yucatán, Mexico

Abstract

Sea anemones (order Actiniaria) are among the benthic marine invertebrate groups that commonly inhabit a wide range of coastal environments, including seagrass meadows, rocky bottoms, coral reefs, sandy patches, mangroves, and artificial substrates. However, they are typically overlooked in most faunal studies or biodiversity assessments in shallow water environments along the coastline of the Mexican Atlantic, particularly in Yucatan. Although some sea anemones species have been reported from coral reef localities in the region, no previous studies have been made to inventory the actinofauna in localities of the coast of Yucatan. In this study, we document 8 species of sea anemones from 5 coastal localities in Yucatan, Mexico, and provide short descriptions and images of the external and internal anatomy, and cnidom. Five of these species have been previously reported from coral reefs in Yucatan, whereas 3 of them are reported for the first time in the region. The aim of this contribution is to inventory the most common species of sea anemones in Yucatan and provide an aid to distinguish them to facilitate identification and encourage biological and ecological research requiring species-level resolution.