Tubastraea coccinea

(Lesson, 1830)

Vernacular names
English : Orange sun coral
French : Tubastrée orange

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

Identification
Polyps can grow up to 1 cm in diameter and up to 1.5 cm in length. Flesh is bright orange or pink. Conspicuous mouth surrounded by flower-like tentacle crown that is bright golden yellow. Colonies can reach up to 10 cm in diameter.

Range and habitat
The species occurs in the Indo-Pacific area from Red Sea and East Africa to Indonesia, east to California. Colonizing tropical western Atlantic. Lives in caves, areas under coral reefs, usually sheltered, from 5 to 60 meters deep.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : NOT LISTED
CITES : Appendix II
Status : The species status hasn’t been assessed. It is rapidly colonizing new territories, especially in the western Atlantic Ocean. Assessing the true range of this species is really tricky as there are at least three similar-looking species in this species’ range that can only be told apart by microscopic analysis.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation

 

Back to “Corals, Gorgonians, Anemones and relatives” page