Pink sea fan
12 July 2010
A UK horny coral related to soft corals and attached to rocky sea bed habitats. Sea fans are colonies of tiny anemone-like creatures whose hard skeleton is composed of protein reinforced with calcium carbonate which runs through the fan. Colonies can be up to 80cm high and up to 100cm across and are very slow growing. This makes them particularly sensitive to the damaging effects of mobile fishing gear (usually scallop dredging).
Pink sea fan (c) Paul Kay
Latin name: Eunicella verrucosa
Population numbers:
Population size is very variable geographically. They are sparse at the limits of their distribution (for instance, in North Devon, east Dorset and in west Wales) and in some other locations such as west Cornwall. The densest areas of sea fans are located in south Devon and Cornwall where estimates suggest there are several million present.
Where to see and when:
Pink sea fans are widely distributed in the south west of Britain between north Pembrokeshire and Studland (Dorset). They are attached to the seabed, usually in depths greater than about 20m, and are present throughout the year. The pink sea fan provides an important habitat for the nationally rare sea fan anemone the sole habitat for the sea fan slug and for a species of colourful snailbelieved to be new to science. The pink sea fan also occurs on the west coast of Ireland, Mediterranean and south to north west Africa.
What’s being done:
The pink sea fan is protected under provisions in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It is a Biodiversity Action Plan Priority species.
By 2012 Natural England will set up network of Marine Protected Areas that will help conserve marine ecosystems and marine biodiversity. The pink sea fan is likely to benefit from this network.The zoning schemes for Lundy and Skomer Marine Conservation Zones (MCZ) were both established to in part to protect pink sea fans from damage from commercial fishing activities.
In 2008 the UK Government closed a 60 square nautical mile area of sea from mobile fishing activities. Early results from this closure show that sensitive marine species are now slowly starting to recover.
The zoning schemes for Lundy and Skomer Marine Conservation Zones (MCZ) were both established to in part to protect pink sea fans from damage from commercial fishing activities.
More information:
Marine Life Information Network
(MarLIN)
