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Related FAQs: Agariciids, SPS
Corals, Stony/True Coral,
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System Lighting, Stony Coral
Identification, Stony Coral Selection, Coral
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Related Articles: True or Stony Corals, Order
Scleractinia, Dyed
Corals,
/The Best Livestock For Your Reef Aquarium:
Cactus, Elephant Skin,
Plate, Lettuce Corals of the Family Agariciidae, pt. 1To:
Part 2, |
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By Bob Fenner |
Agaricia tenuifolia |
Family Agariciidae, Gray 1847. All utilize endosymbiotic algae, all
colonial. Individual coral polyp skeletons have poorly formed walls,
prominent/thickened septo-costae, are immersed in their larger skeletal mass,
randomly oriented, spaced, often resembling rough, wrinkled skin. Six living
genera.
Genus Agaricia Lamarck 1801. Species are mostly thin vertical plates
(sometimes horizontal).
| Agaricia grahamae, Graham's Sheet Coral. Looks like
thin sheets to thick plates, often as piled up shingles on a sloping reef.
Polyps appear star-like in valleys. Septa alternate in size (Lamarck's are
equal in size). Bahamas pix. Second pick, Graham's on left, Lamarck's on
right for comparison. |
 
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| Agaricia lamarcki Milne Edwards & Haime 1851,
Lamarck's Sheet Coral. Colonies are flat one-faced plates arranged in
whorls. Usually brown rust in color with whitish mouths. Belize images. |
 
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| Agaricia tenuifolia Dana 1848. Thin upright colonies,
joined at angles at their base. Corallites in valleys, arranged
concentrically with low ridges. Bahamas images. |
 
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Genus Gardinoseris Scheer and Pillai 1974: Monotypic.
| Gardinoseris planulata (Dana 1846). Massive to
encrusting. Corallites separated by high walls, columellae present,
septa-costae fine, even. Red Sea, East Africa to Hawai'i, Polynesia and
tropical east Pacific coast. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas, Polynesia pix. |
 
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Genus Leptoseris found in both the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific
(rest of genera found in Indo-Pacific only). Colonies either laminar (blade
like) or encrusting. Frequently have striations on fronds.
| Leptoseris cucullata (Ellis & Solander 1786).
Colonies are irregular flat plat plates. Corallites point outward. Found
in the tropical West Atlantic. Bahamas images. |
 
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| Leptoseris explanata Yabe & Sugiyama 1941.
Colonies made up of one-sided blades. Corallites expand as they grow
toward end of blades. Red Sea colony and close-up. |
 
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| Leptoseris gairdneri Horst 1941.
Colonies are horizontal (though fronds are upright) and made up of one-sided blades. Corallites
aligned on fronds. N. Sulawesi colony and close-up. |
 
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| Leptoseris hawaiiensis Vaughan 1907. Colonies as
encrusting laminae. Corallites raised irregularly, rounded. Septae costae
even. Green or brown in color. East Africa, Red Sea to Hawai'i, Tuamotus
and tropical East Pacific. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas, Polynesia pic. |
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| Leptoseris incrustans (Quelch 1886), Swelling Coral.
Most common member of the genus in Hawai'i. Identified by swellings of
septo-costae between the calyces. Colonies of only a few inches across
occur under ledges, generally in deeper water. Tan to reddish-brown to
greenish in color. Indo-Pacific. Kona, HI pic. |
 
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| Leptoseris scabra Vaughan 1907. Colonies as unifacial
laminae. Alternating short and long septo-costae. Nuka Hiva, Marquesas, Polynesia pic. |
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| Leptoseris solida (Quelch 1886). Encrusting colonies
with corallites distributed randomly, while forming mound-like ridges
concentrically. Redang, Malaysia photos. |
 
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To: Part 2 | |
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