These large coral colonies are easy to recognize because of their fan shape. A flexible, horny substance called gorgonin forms this coral's central skeleton, which supports all branches of the colony. Living tissues form a layer over the skeleton's entire surface. Sea Fan More than a million microscopic algae called zooxanthellae are found in a square centimeter of coral tissue. The algae make food for the coral through the process of photosynthesis. The algae also generate the coral's color. Sea fans appear in shades of red, yellow, or orange.

Sea fans typically grow across the current so that their polyps can spread out their tentacles to form a net for catching microscopic plants (plankton). There are about 500 species of Gorgonia. The species shown here is found in the shallow waters of all oceans, but is especially abundant along the Atlantic coasts of Florida, Bermuda, and the West Indies.

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