- 14 Mar 2002
- 21,050
- 18,903
Japanese researchers have reported the discovery of a sea anemone whose cone-shaped body resembles Mount Fuji. They explained that the creature is not just a new species but also belongs to a previously unknown genus and family. It has been given the Japanese name Umi no Fujisan (海の富士山) — "Mount Fuji in the sea" — in honour of the country's highest peak, since it was first identified in Suruga Bay, an area that lies beneath the shadow of the 3,776-metre volcano.
Umi no Fujisan (海の富士山), provided by Izumi Takato, a lecturer at Fukuyama University via Asahi
According to Takato Izumi, a taxonomy specialist at Fukuyama University, the name was chosen because the animal's form so closely mirrors the outline of the mountain. The sea anemone has a pale, almost white body, displays a neat radial symmetry, and measures about 2 centimetres across its base and 1 centimetre in height. The first specimen was retrieved in 2003 from a depth of 311 metres in Suruga Bay. Since that time, similar anemones have been recorded in waters off Kanagawa, Iwate, Nagasaki and Kōchi prefectures, among other locations.
Umi no Fujisan (海の富士山), provided by Izumi Takato, a lecturer at Fukuyama University via Asahi
According to Takato Izumi, a taxonomy specialist at Fukuyama University, the name was chosen because the animal's form so closely mirrors the outline of the mountain. The sea anemone has a pale, almost white body, displays a neat radial symmetry, and measures about 2 centimetres across its base and 1 centimetre in height. The first specimen was retrieved in 2003 from a depth of 311 metres in Suruga Bay. Since that time, similar anemones have been recorded in waters off Kanagawa, Iwate, Nagasaki and Kōchi prefectures, among other locations.
