Homophyllia bowerbanki

(Milne Edwards & Haime, 1857)

Vernacular names
English : Bowerbank’s starry cup coral
French : Corail-étoile de Bowerbank

Classification
Class : Anthozoa
Order : Scleractinia
Family : Lobophylliidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Colonies are encrusting and usually around 30 cm wide with a conspicuous central corallite. Corallites have a diameter of 1 to 2.5 cm. Mantle fleshy, coloration usually rusty and green or grey-brown, sometimes mottled.

Range and habitat
This species occurs in eastern Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean, from Andaman Islands and Indonesia to south Japan and to Micronesia. Lives in lower reef slopes, protected from waves, down to 20 m depth.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : VULNERABLE
CITES : Appendix II
Status : This species has a large range but remains rare in the wild, except around east Australia. Vulnerable to climate change and pollution.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation

 

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