What are Sea Fans?
Sea fans, also called gorgonians and sea whips, are nocturnal sea animals that look more like plants than animals. They are scientifically classified as belonging to the kingdom Animalia, the phylum Cnidaria, the class Anthozoa, the subclass Alcyonaria, and the order Gorgonacea. Sea fans are sessile, which means they cannot move around, and they are found exclusively in seawater environments. They live in oceans around the world. They are particularly suited to tropical and subtropical ocean water and are often found in shallow water near the state of Florida and places like Bermuda and the West Indies. Sea fans consist of individual polyps that form colonies of the animals. These colonies normally stand vertically and appear flattened with branches, creating a fan-like look. However, they can sometimes appear bushy or look like whips. Sometimes they even appear encrusted. Colonies of sea fan polyps may grow to be many feet high and expand several feet across yet have only a few inches
