Hexacorallia |
Scleractinia |
Merulinidae
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Reef-associated; depth range 0 - 40 m (Ref. 847). Tropical; 36°N - 30°S, 32°E - 137°W (Ref. 847)
Indo-Pacific.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 100.0 cm COLD male/unsexed; (Ref. 269)
Colonies form encrusting plates (up to 1 m diameter) which may develop short (10 cm), gnarled, vertical branches, particularly in shallow water. Corallites are arranged in near parallel rows that meander slightly. The walls are almost the same width as the corallites. Septa are continuous over walls between adjacent corallites (Ref. 269). Zooxanthellate (Ref. 19).
Common at shallow to intermediate depths (Ref. 269) in a wide variety of reef environments, especially in lagoons (Ref. 101940). Zooxanthellae (Ref. 19).
Life cycle and mating behavior
Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae
Hermaphroditic (Ref. 113712). Mature gametes are shed into the coelenteron and spawned through the mouth. Life cycle: The zygote develops into a planktonic planula larva. Metamorphosis begins with early morphogenesis of tentacles, septa and pharynx before larval settlement on the aboral end (Ref. 833).
Hodgson, G. 1998. (Ref. 269)
IUCN Red List Status
(Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
CITES status (Ref. 108899)
Not Evaluated
Threat to humans
Human uses
| FishSource |
Tools
More information
Trophic EcologyFood items (preys)
Diet composition
Food consumption
Predators
Population dynamicsGrowthMax. ages / sizesLength-weight rel.Length-length rel.Length-frequenciesMass conversionAbundance PhysiologyOxygen consumption
Human RelatedStamps, coins, misc.
Internet sources
Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature
(Ref.
115969): 24.9 - 29, mean 27.9 (based on 814 cells).
Fishing Vulnerability
High vulnerability (60 of 100).
Price category
Unknown.