Pore Coral

zooxanthellate

Thick encrusting sheets or low massive forms, sometimes with leafy edges to the colony, but sometimes forming extensive, thin leaves. This species has a smooth looking surface, with large, rounded tuberculae 0.5 to 1.5 cm long, of irregular shape. Calices lie between the tuberculae. It is common on reef slopes from 5 to 25 m depth (Sheppard, 1998). Colonies are columns or plates with surfaces covered with tuberculae which are dome-shaped or fused into radiating ridges. Corallites are small, immersed, crowded between the tuberculae. Colour: usually pale brown with paler margins. Polyps are often brightly coloured. Abundance: common on upper reef slopes and lagoons (Veron, 1986). Generally encrusting or plate-forming, with bumps and ridges between polyps. Colour: pale brown with lighter margins; polyps may be brightly coloured but are not generally seen during the day. Habitat: lagoons and shallow reef slopes (Richmond, 1997).