Population density, prey selection, and predator avoidance of the burrowing anemone (Ceriantheopsis americanus) in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island

The maximum population density of the burrowing anemone (Ceriantheopsis americanus) was estimated at 17–28 animals m^?2 in soft-bottom sediments of mid Narragansett Bay. The gut contents of the anemone indicated primary prey of harpacticoid and calanoid copepods. The consumption of calanoid copepods was higher in October than April, which may be due to decreased density of hapacticoids in the fall. The anemones apparently avoid fish predation in late summer by withdrawing into the sediments. After the seasonal fall migration of fish out of the bay, anemones reappear.