Common Sea Fan
Gorgonia ventalina
Gorgoniidaemacro1.8m / 6ft (colony height)Data Deficient
About Common Sea Fan.
A soft coral that grows as a flattened, fan-shaped colony oriented across the prevailing current to maximise the plankton it can strain from passing water, its purple-to-lavender branches forming one of the most recognisable silhouettes on Caribbean reefs. Colonies can live for decades and are periodically affected by aspergillosis, a fungal disease causing purple lesions and dieback.
Where it lives.
Reef slopes and walls with steady current flow
How it behaves.
Sessile filter feeder; orients its fan-shaped colony across the current