Orbicella
| Orbicella | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Class: | Anthozoa |
| Subclass: | Hexacorallia |
| Order: | Scleractinia |
| Family: | Merulinidae |
| Genus: | Orbicella Dana, 1846 [1] |
| Species | |
|
| |
Orbicella is a genus of stony corals in the Merulinidae family. Members of this genus are known as star corals and were at one time classified in the genus Montastraea. They are shallow-water, zooxanthellate species and are native to the tropical western Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Characteristics
The colonies of these corals are massive and form dome-shaped mounds, with uneven surfaces and bulging projections. The corallites are small and closely packed. These corals are mostly some shade of light brown but sometimes have green oral discs.[2]
Species
The following species are currently recognized by the World Register of Marine Species :[1]
- Orbicella annularis (Ellis & Solander, 1786)
- Orbicella faveolata (Ellis & Solander, 1786)
- Orbicella franksi (Gregory, 1895)
References
- 1 2 Hoeksema, Bert (2015). "Orbicella Dana, 1846". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2015-06-14.
- ↑ "Montastraea faveolata (Ellis 1786)". CoralPedia. University of Warwick. Retrieved 2015-06-14.
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