Acropora hyacinthus

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Acropora hyacinthus
Lodestone Reef, Valentines Day 2016 CoralScape.jpg
Lodestone Reef, Queensland
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Hexacorallia
Order: Scleractinia
Family: Acroporidae
Genus: Acropora
Species:
A. hyacinthus
Binomial name
Acropora hyacinthus
(Dana, 1846)
Synonyms
List
  • Acropora bifurcataNemenzo, 1971
  • Acropora conferta(Quelch, 1886)
  • Acropora flabelliformis(Milne Edwards, 1860)
  • Acropora pectinata(Brook, 1892)
  • Acropora recumbens(Brook, 1892)
  • Acropora surculosa(Dana, 1846)
  • Madrepora confertaQuelch, 1886
  • Madrepora flabelliformisMilne Edwards, 1860
  • Madrepora hyacinthusDana, 1846
  • Madrepora patellaStuder, 1879
  • Madrepora pectinataBrook, 1892
  • Madrepora recumbensBrook, 1892
  • Madrepora sinensisBrook, 1893
  • Madrepora surculosaDana, 1846
  • Madrepora turbinataDana, 1846

Acropora hyacinthus is a species of Acropora described from a specimen collected in Fiji by James Dwight Dana in 1846. [2] It is thought to have a range that includes the Indian Ocean, the Indo-Pacific waters, southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the western Pacific Ocean. It lives on shallow reefs on upper reef slopes, and is found from depths of 1–25 metres (3.3–82.0 ft). Crown-of-thorns starfish preferentially prey upon Acropora corals.

Contents

Description

Acropora hyacinthus occurs in plate- or table-shaped wide colonies that consist of a number of thin branches in a lattice structure. It has strongly inclined branchlets. A. hyacinthus has axial dominant branches, so each branch has a large dominant axial corallite with much smaller cup-shaped radial corallites. The corallites on specimens of A. hyacinthus are often darker than the main branch structure. The species looks similar to many tabular Acropora species and is often misidentified in the field.

Growth rate

Branching corals of the genus Acropora are among the fastest-growing taxa on most coral reefs. A. hyacinthus has an average growth rate that ranges from 3–10 centimetres (1.2–3.9 in) diameter increase per year, with much of this variation thought to be a response to temperature, in addition to competition and other abiotic and biotic factors. [3] [4] [5]

Distribution

Like most corals, Acropora hyacinthus is classed as a data deficient species on the IUCN Red List, but it is believed that its population is decreasing in line with the global decline in reefs, and it is listed under Appendix II of CITES. Figures of its population are unknown, but is likely to be threatened by the global reduction of coral reefs, the increase of temperature causing coral bleaching, climate change, human activity, the crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) and disease. [1] It occurs at depths from 1 to 25 metres (3 ft 3 in to 82 ft 0 in) on the upper slopes of shallow reefs. It occurs in the Indian Ocean, the Indo-Pacific waters, southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea, Australia, and the western Pacific Ocean. [1]

Taxonomy

The species was originally described by James Dwight Dana in 1846 as Madrepora hyacinthus. [6] Currently this species is considered to be a species complex, with many of the synonyms being called into question. [7]

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<i>Acropora globiceps</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora listeri</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora monticulosa</i> Species of coral

Acropora monticulosa is a species of acroporid coral found in the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean. It is also found in the Tuamotus. It occurs in tropical shallow reefs on upper slopes, from depths of 1 to 12 metres. It was described by Brüggemann in 1879.

<i>Acropora palmerae</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora robusta</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora samoensis</i> Species of coral

Acropora samoensis is a species of acroporid coral found in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west and central Pacific Ocean. It occurs in tropical shallow reefs on upper slopes of reefs, from depths of 5 to 15 metres. It was described by Brook in 1891.

Acropora striata is a species of acroporid coral found in the southwest Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Japan and the East China Sea. It can also be found in the Marshall Islands, the Society Islands, the Cook Islands, Kiribati, the Solomon Islands, western and eastern Australia, the Great Barrier Reef, Palau, the south Mariana Islands and Pohnpei. It occurs in tropical shallow reefs on reef flats or rocky foreshores, at depths of 10 to 25 metres. It probably spawns in October and was described by Verrill in 1866.

Acropora subglabra is a species of acroporid coral found in the northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean. It occurs in tropical shallow reefs, and its range is often restricted to sheltered back reefs containing soft substrates and clear water. It can be found from depths of 5 to 15 metres and was described by Brook in 1891.

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<i>Acropora valida</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora vaughani</i> Species of coral

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<i>Acropora verweyi</i> Species of coral

Acropora verweyi is a species of acroporid coral found in the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic western Pacific Ocean. It is also found in the Philippines, American Samoa, Fiji and Rodrigues. It occurs in tropical shallow reefs on upper slopes, from depths of 2 to 15 metres.

<i>Acropora humilis</i> Species of coral

Acropora humilis, also known as finger coral, is a species of acroporid coral found in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, the northern and southwestern Indian Ocean, Australia, the central Indo-Pacific, Japan, southeast Asia, the East China Sea, the central and western Pacific Ocean, the Johnston Atoll and the northwestern Hawaiian Islands. It also occurs in the Raja Ampat Islands, Mariana Islands, Palau, and the Pitcairn Islands. Occurring in tropical shallow reefs on upper reef flats and slopes at depths of up to 12 metres (39 ft), it was described by Dana in 1846.

<i>Acropora echinata</i> Species of coral

Acropora echinata is a species of acroporid coral that was first described by Dana in 1846. Found in shallow, tropical, sheltered reefs in marine environments, it is found at depths of 8 to 25 m in clear water. The species is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and has a decreasing population. It is not common but found over a large area, and is listed under CITES Appendix II.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Aeby, G.; Lovell, E.; Richards, Z.; Delbeek, J.C.; Reboton, C.; Bass, D. (2008). "Acropora hyacinthus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008: e.T133479A3765052. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T133479A3765052.en . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ↑ "Invertebrate Zoology Collections Search". collections.nmnh.si.edu. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  3. ↑ Tomascik, T.; van Woesik, R.; Mah, A. J. (1996-09-01). "Rapid coral colonization of a recent lava flow following a volcanic eruption, Banda Islands, Indonesia". Coral Reefs. 15 (3): 169–175. doi:10.1007/BF01145887. ISSN   1432-0975.
  4. ↑ Wakeford, M.; Done, T. J.; Johnson, C. R. (2008). "Decadal trends in a coral community and evidence of changed disturbance regime". Coral Reefs. 27 (1): 1–13. ISSN   0722-4028.
  5. ↑ Linares, C; Pratchett, Ms; Coker, Dj (2011-10-05). "Recolonisation of Acropora hyacinthus following climate-induced coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef". Marine Ecology Progress Series. 438: 97–104. doi: 10.3354/meps09272 . ISSN   0171-8630.
  6. ↑ "Acropora hyacinthus (Dana, 1846)". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  7. ↑ "Collecting topotypes of all nominal species". Project Phoenix. 2020-09-02. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
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