Turbinaria conspicua
| Turbinaria conspicua | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Cnidaria |
| Class: | Anthozoa |
| Subclass: | Hexacorallia |
| Order: | Scleractinia |
| Family: | Dendrophylliidae |
| Genus: | Turbinaria |
| Species: | T. conspicua |
| Binomial name | |
| Turbinaria conspicua Bernard, 1896[2] | |
Turbinaria conspicua, commonly known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the eastern Indian Ocean and the western Pacific region, including Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and northern Australia. It is a zooxanthellate coral that houses symbiont dinoflagellates in its tissues. It was described by Bernard in 1896 and is rated as a least-concern species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Description
It is a colonial stony coral and its colonies contain bifacial fronds of small diameters. It has immersed and small corallites and is cream or pale brown in colour.[3] It is a zooxanthellate rare coral that houses symbiont dinoflagellates in its tissues.[1]
Distribution and conservation
Figures of its population are unknown but are considered to be decreasing, but is likely to be threatened by the global reduction of coral reefs, the increase of temperature causing coral bleaching, climate change, human activity, parasites, and disease.[1] It is found in the eastern Indian Ocean and western central Pacific Ocean, in the countries of Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. It is found at depths of between 2 and 20 metres (6 ft 7 in and 65 ft 7 in) in shallow reefs.[1] The IUCN has rated the conservation status of this species as being of "least concern". It is an uncommon species, but the areas in which it is found in northern Australia have been less affected by damage to the reefs than have other regions. T. conspicua is listed under CITES Appendix II.[1]
Taxonomy
The disc coral was described as Turbinaria conspicua by H. Bernard in 1896.[2]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Hoeksema, B.W.; Rogers, A.; Quibilan, M.C. (2008). "Turbinaria conspicua". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
- 1 2 Hoeksema, B. (2015). "Turbinaria conspicua Bernard, 1896". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
- ↑ "Turbinaria conspicua". Australian Institute of Marine Science. Retrieved 2015-08-15.