How Do Anemones Breathe?

Sea anemones provide an aquarium with bright pops of color as well as with shelter for clownfish. Clownfish prefer to live within the anemones' tentacles, which serve to protect them from predators. In turn the fish help the anemones breathe. Anemones need relatively strong current to allow them breath. These creatures breathe through their skin.

  1. Gas Exchange

    • Anemones don't have gills like fish do, but you can think of their entire bodies as gills. Fish gills work by diffusing oxygen out of the water; the skin, or ectoderm, of anemones does the same thing. The skin coats itself with mucus to help with the process. When water flows past these mucus-covered creatures, anemones release carbon dioxide and take in oxygen.

    Tentacles

    • Although the tentacles at the top of an anemone look small compared with the often thick body that attaches to the sea floor, they are essential in helping the animal breathe. Tentacles' main purpose is to catch prey and bring it into the body through the center mouth, but they serve another purpose. Tentacles have significantly more surface area than the body has, which means more water passes by the tentacles. They therefore tend to perform much of the anemone's respiration. The more exposed skin the better the anemone can breathe.

    Other Substances That Diffuse

    • In addition to moving oxygen in and carbon dioxide out, the ectoderm removes the anemone's waste. Solid waste, including inedible objects such as small rocks, are ejected up out of the mouth cavity; but the anemone has no excretory system, so it releases waste after digestion by diffusion. Usually, this waste is in the form of ammonia released into the seawater.

    Clownfish

    • Clownfish like to live within anemones' tentacles. These tentacles tend to pack powerful stings, helping ward off predators and keeping clownfish safe. But clownfish help the anemones survive as well. While inside anemones, clownfish do a little dance, wiggling around and waving their fins. This helps circulate and oxygenate the water inside and around the anemones, helping them breathe. Adding clownfish to your tank with your anemones isn't essential for their survival if you have an appropriately strong current, but the extra oxygenation can help your anemones grow faster.