Yellow Cluster Anemone

Photo: Sarah Faulwetter · CC BY

Vivid yellow encrusting colonies of Parazoanthus axinellae cover the cave walls and ceilings in dense mats, producing some of the most colourful displays in the Ionian's cave systems. These colonial animals feed on plankton carried by the cave's through-current and are important structural reef builders in low-light environments. Their intense yellow colouration, which requires a torch to reveal in full, transforms the cave interior into a glowing gallery.