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Sea lilies - their name is almost self explanatory - at first sight closely resemble beautiful flowers with stems lacking leaves. However, they are animals and belong to the echinoderms. The 'flower' consists of a cup- or funnel-like calyx with on the upper side relatively long and movable arms. Situated in the centre of the calyx is the mouth, next to which lies the anus. On the lower side of the calyx is the column with which the animal anchors itself to the sea floor or clings to floating objects. FFrom the Jurassic onwards, there were also free-living forms. Most modern species are in fact stemless.