Something that looks like a flower may have legs under its petals or a mouth in the center of a ring of tentacles. In the forest, a few insects resemble blooms well enough to surprise you. Underwater, anemones, corals,…
Items 29 The creator’s order
1 Hymenopus coronatus The orchid mantis has wide, petal-like lobes on its legs, particularly striking on young pink or white individuals. Notice where the apparent petals bend. Its longer front legs fold up near the head and can reach for insects visiting a nearby bloom. 0 2 Anthopleura xanthogrammica From above, the giant green anemone looks like a green bloom. Its soft tentacles radiate around a mouth. When exposed at low tide, the animal can pull them in. The column below the flowerlike disk anchors it to rock. 0 3 Flower hat jelly Bright colored tips on curling tentacles sit around a patterned bell, giving this jelly the look of an ornate flower. Because the tentacles and bell are parts of a swimming animal, the apparent petals can change position independently. 0 4 Orange cup coral This sun coral looks like a cluster of bright orange cups, especially when the individual polyps are closed. When extended, little tentacles ring each cup. The tentacles can give the colony a new shape without any change in its skeleton. 0 5 Beadlet anemone Open in water, a beadlet anemone has a crown of radiating tentacles. When the tide falls it may pull them inside and look like a small blob. A photograph of both states makes it easy to see how the same animal can lose its flower shape. 0 6 Dahlia anemone Its short, thick tentacles can form a compact bloom like a dahlia. Look for the fleshy central disk and rings of tentacles rather than separate petals on a stem. This is an anemone you may find in crevices or attached to rocky surfaces. 0 7 Thomisus onustus Look for a little triangular abdomen and long front legs on a pink, white, or yellow bloom. The spider’s color can blend with the petal behind it, leaving the shadow and small joints as better clues than color. 0 8 Creobroter gemmatus The jeweled flower mantis has a mottled body and a bright, eye-like mark on each forewing. Its flat outline can blend into a cluster of leaves and flowers. Watch for the narrow face and folded front legs to distinguish it from a bloom. 0 9 Metridium A dense fringe divides into many thin tentacles at the top, giving the animal a ruffled head. Wide colonies can resemble bunches of feathery blooms. Look for the smooth stalk below that crown and the change in shape as the anemone folds. 0 10 Goniopora Each extended polyp looks like a little daisy on a stalk, with a ring of tentacles around a central mouth. What appears to be a whole bunch of blooms is a colony. Watching one polyp retract makes the hard coral below easier to see. 0 
Hymenopus coronatusThe orchid mantis has wide, petal-like lobes on its legs, particularly striking on young pink or white individuals. Notice where the apparent petals bend. Its longer front legs fold up near the head and can reach for insects visiting a nearby bloom.0
Anthopleura xanthogrammicaFrom above, the giant green anemone looks like a green bloom. Its soft tentacles radiate around a mouth. When exposed at low tide, the animal can pull them in. The column below the flowerlike disk anchors it to rock.0
Flower hat jellyBright colored tips on curling tentacles sit around a patterned bell, giving this jelly the look of an ornate flower. Because the tentacles and bell are parts of a swimming animal, the apparent petals can change position independently.0
Orange cup coralThis sun coral looks like a cluster of bright orange cups, especially when the individual polyps are closed. When extended, little tentacles ring each cup. The tentacles can give the colony a new shape without any change in its skeleton.0
Beadlet anemoneOpen in water, a beadlet anemone has a crown of radiating tentacles. When the tide falls it may pull them inside and look like a small blob. A photograph of both states makes it easy to see how the same animal can lose its flower shape.0
Dahlia anemoneIts short, thick tentacles can form a compact bloom like a dahlia. Look for the fleshy central disk and rings of tentacles rather than separate petals on a stem. This is an anemone you may find in crevices or attached to rocky surfaces.0
Thomisus onustusLook for a little triangular abdomen and long front legs on a pink, white, or yellow bloom. The spider’s color can blend with the petal behind it, leaving the shadow and small joints as better clues than color.0
Creobroter gemmatusThe jeweled flower mantis has a mottled body and a bright, eye-like mark on each forewing. Its flat outline can blend into a cluster of leaves and flowers. Watch for the narrow face and folded front legs to distinguish it from a bloom.0
MetridiumA dense fringe divides into many thin tentacles at the top, giving the animal a ruffled head. Wide colonies can resemble bunches of feathery blooms. Look for the smooth stalk below that crown and the change in shape as the anemone folds.0
GonioporaEach extended polyp looks like a little daisy on a stalk, with a ring of tentacles around a central mouth. What appears to be a whole bunch of blooms is a colony. Watching one polyp retract makes the hard coral below easier to see.0