Thomas Heising

Visual science communication
Back to the Lab

Lovecraftian horrors of Cork

Irish nature
2026 | Cork, Ireland

Small test for a video I’m working on. Even through the refractions and reflections of the water, the gluttonous behaviour of a beadlet anemone is apparent as it latches on to a sea snail. Footage is sped up about 20 times.

Along the coastline of Cork lives some of the most unassuming and nightmarish predators: beadlet sea anemones.

Despite the adorable name, sea anemones are neither flowers nor plants. The flower-like structure is not made of petals, but of writhing tentacles ready to drag prey into the animal’s digestive system.

Beadlet anemones will try and eat just about anything they can hold on to – anything that’s small and tasty enough to last the journey into its gut. It’s a slow end inside then, as the prey is broken down slowly by digestive fluids. And if the catch isn’t compatible with its culinary preferences or body fluids, the sea anemone will simply spit it out.

Beadlet anemones can teach important life lessons for a cost

Observing them requires patience though, which is a challenging skill in today’s culture. I’m currently working on a project time-lapsing these strange animals along West Cork’s coasts, and I’ve had to confront myself with just how impatient I really am. Thus I’m learning from these blubbery animals on how to take my time.

Beadlet anemone open again

After a while, they seem quite cute.

Here's a few other fun facts:
  • Sea anemones are, like jellyfish, cnidarians – simple animals that have an evolutionary history of over 500 million years, loooong before we vertebrates were a thing.
  • Instead of a central nervous system aka a brain, the animal has its nervous system distributed all throughout its body.
  • If you poke them gently they will either retract their tentacles to protect themselves or briefly try to drag you into their abyss.
  • Speaking of which, they’re commonly described as highly aggressive by various sources as they’ll lash out with their tentacles and toxins if they come into contact with other sea anemones. My plan is to try and get some footage of this!
  • Funny to imagine from our standpoint: the hole in the middle of the rings of tentacles functions as both its mouth and its anus. And so, it’s difficult for the sea anemone to eat and defecate at the same time. I made the same analogy about airmass thunderstorm here.
Anatomy of a beadlet sea anemone showing the acrorhagi, tentacles and basal disc.

Anatomy of a beadlet sea anemone.

Anyways, if you’re creating a story featuring monsters of absolute horror, then just visit an Irish rockpool and envision being a periwinkle-sized human.

Proper fuel for a nightmare!

References:

Collins, J.R., Vernon, E. L. & Thomson J. S. 2017. Variation in risk-taking and aggression in morphotypes of the beadlet anemone, Actinia equina (L.), and the green anemone, Actinia prasina (Gosse). Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology. Vol. 496, PP. 29–36. DOI: 10.1016/j.jembe.2017.07.011

Russell-Hunter, W. D. 1979. A Life of Invertebrates. Syracuse University and The Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole. Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc. New York. Collier Macmillan Publishers. London. ISBN: 0-02-978300-8

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/marine/anemones-and-corals/beadlet-anemone