#anthozoan

• Anthozoa — A class of marine invertebrates within the phylum Cnidaria that includes stone corals, sea anemones, soft corals, and sea fans, characterized by the complete absence of a medusa stage in their life cycle, existing exclusively as polyps.
• Anthozoan — A marine invertebrate belonging to the class Anthozoa, phylum Cnidaria, living exclusively in the form of a solitary or colonial polyp fixed onto a solid substrate (such as corals and sea anemones), completely lacking the free medusa stage. This organism possesses a cylindrical body whose oral opening is structurally surrounded by tentacles equipped with cnidocytes, being the primary builder of barrier reefs through the secretion of a hard calcareous exoskeleton.