Annella mollis is one of the more common gorgonians and forms the largest colonies. It lives at a range of shallow to deep depths on lagoon, pinnacle and seaward reefs. The largest fans tend to be deep, around 40m and deeper, on seaward and pinnacle reefs, but the fans can also be found in quiet lagoon areas and on lagoon bottom shipwrecks. On some of the deeper seaward reef colonies we have found the ovulid shell Pellasimnia annabelae and on one fan we found the only pygmy seahorse Hippocampus denise known from Kwajalein. It frequently serves as a perch for crinoids. Its photogenic nature has led to numerous photos below.
The upper gorgonian in the photo below is a different species, not Annella.
Created 26 October 2020