Knotted sea fans
Melithaea
Genus-level entry: species are told apart only by microscopic features (sclerites). Valid genus (WoRMS, AphiaID 205342, checked 2026-10-31). Species recorded from the Maldives: Melithaea coccinea, Melithaea maldivensis, Melithaea rubrinodis, Melithaea triangulata, Melithaea variabilis.
- English
- Knotted sea fans
- Scientific
- Melithaea
- Dhivehi
- No recorded Dhivehi name
- IUCN status
- NE · Not EvaluatedNot Evaluated (NE) as a genus; most species not assessed
Description
Knotted sea fans form fan- or bush-shaped colonies with swollen nodes along their branches, often red, orange, yellow or pink. They grow across the current on walls, overhangs and channel edges, where they catch plankton. One species, Melithaea maldivensis, is named after the Maldives. Species are told apart only by microscopic features.
In the Maldives
Recorded from the Maldives: museum specimens (n=30); iNaturalist research-grade observations at species level (n=24); literature records via OBIS.
Sources
- marinespecies.org /aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=205342
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Melithaea_ochracea1.jpg
Dhivehi name source: No species-level Dhivehi name found in Dhivehi Wikipedia, SeaLifeBase (country: Maldives) or MRS/MMRI invertebrate publications.