| Cycloseris distorta | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Petalonamae |
| Class: | Hexacorallia |
| Order: | Scleractinia |
| Family: | Fungiidae |
| Genus: | Cycloseris |
| Species: | C. distorta |
| Binomial name | |
| Cycloseris distorta | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
Cycloseris distorta is a species of disc coral in the family Fungiidae. It is a free-living, solitary coral and is native to the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region where it is found on soft sediment in shallow water.
This coral was first described by the French naturalist Jean-Louis Hardouin Michelin de Choisy in 1842 who named it Fungia distorta. It was later transferred to the genus Diaseris becoming Diaseris distorta. [2] In 2011, research using molecular methods resulted in Diaseris being absorbed into the genus Cycloseris . [3]
Cycloseris distorta is a solitary, free-living coral that grows to a diameter of about 80 mm (3 in). The large polyp is irregular in shape and has a central mouth from which radiate wedge-shaped segments. The corallite (the stony cup in which the polyp sits) has numerous beaded septa (partitions) of varying heights. The polyp can absorb water from its surroundings and inflate itself to several times its original size. When the tentacles are extended to feed, it has a fuzzy appearance. This coral is some shade of cream or pale fawn, and may be mottled. [4]
Cycloseris distorta occurs in the tropical and subtropical Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Its range extends from the east coast of Africa and Madagascar to Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, northern and eastern Australia and the Galapagos Islands. It occurs on soft sediments, usually at depths of 25 m (80 ft) or less, but occasionally down to about 80 m (260 ft). [1]
In the Galapagos Islands, this species is known from a single location. The population there, estimated to be several hundred thousand individuals, is so dense that the corals are sometimes piled on top of each other. [5] On a nearby island, there is a location where there are large numbers of dead skeletons of this species, but no living individuals. [5]
Individual corals are either male or female. Fecundity is high and broadcast spawning takes place four to eight times per year. Asexual reproduction by fission is an important means of reproduction for this species. The coral may be fragmented due to physical forces, such as storms, but it is also capable of autotomy, causing itself to break apart through selective weakening of certain parts of the skeleton. [5]
A polyp in zoology is one of two forms found in the phylum Cnidaria, the other being the medusa. Polyps are roughly cylindrical in shape and elongated at the axis of the vase-shaped body. In solitary polyps, the aboral end is attached to the substrate by means of a disc-like holdfast called a pedal disc, while in colonies of polyps it is connected to other polyps, either directly or indirectly. The oral end contains the mouth, and is surrounded by a circlet of tentacles.
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.
Antipatharians, also known as black corals or thorn corals, are an order of soft deep-water corals. These corals can be recognized by their jet-black or dark brown chitin skeletons, surrounded by the polyps. Antipatharians are a cosmopolitan order, existing at nearly every location and depth, with the sole exception of brackish waters. However, they are most frequently found on continental slopes under 50 m (164 ft) deep. A black coral reproduces both sexually and asexually throughout its lifetime. Many black corals provide housing, shelter, food, and protection for other animals.
Scleractinia, also called stony corals or hard corals, are marine animals in the phylum Cnidaria that build themselves a hard skeleton. The individual animals are known as polyps and have a cylindrical body crowned by an oral disc in which a mouth is fringed with tentacles. Although some species are solitary, most are colonial. The founding polyp settles and starts to secrete calcium carbonate to protect its soft body. Solitary corals can be as much as 25 cm (10 in) across but in colonial species the polyps are usually only a few millimetres in diameter. These polyps reproduce asexually by budding, but remain attached to each other, forming a multi-polyp colony of clones with a common skeleton, which may be up to several metres in diameter or height according to species.
The Fungiidae are a family of Cnidaria, commonly known as mushroom corals or plate corals. The family contains thirteen extant genera. They range from solitary corals to colonial species. Some genera such as Cycloseris and Fungia are solitary organisms, Polyphyllia consists of a single organism with multiple mouths, and Ctenactis and Herpolitha might be considered as solitary organisms with multiple mouths or a colony of individuals, each with its separate mouth.
The open brain coral is a brightly colored free-living coral species in the family Merulinidae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Trachyphyllia and can be found throughout the Indo-Pacific.
Fungia is a genus of corals in the family Fungiidae. It is monotypic with the single species Fungia fungites, which is found growing on reefs in the Indo-Pacific.
Cycloseris is a genus of solitary disc corals in the family Fungiidae. They are found in the Indo-Pacific. They inhabit the lower reef slopes, and the areas between reefs with soft sediments. They tolerate turbid waters.
Lobactis is a genus of plate or mushroom coral in the family Fungiidae. The genus is monotypic with a single species, Lobactis scutaria, that is found in the Indo-Pacific region.
Lobophyllia corymbosa, also known as lobed cactus coral or brain root coral, is a species of large polyp stony coral in the family Lobophylliidae. It occurs on reefs in shallow waters in the Red Sea, off the coast of East Africa, and in other parts of the tropical Indo-Pacific.
Pocillopora damicornis, commonly known as the cauliflower coral or lace coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Pocillopora verrucosa, commonly known as cauliflower coral, rasp coral, or knob-horned coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Lithophyllon repanda is a species of mushroom or disc coral in the family Fungiidae.This species is able to move to another location on occasion. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) rated it as a least-concern species and it was originally described by Dana in 1846. It occurs at depths of 1 to 30 metres.
Seriatopora hystrix is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It forms a branching clump and is commonly known as thin birdsnest coral. It grows in shallow water on fore-reef slopes or in sheltered lagoons, the type locality being the Red Sea. It is native to East Africa, the Red Sea and the western Indo-Pacific region. It is a common species and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".
Heliofungia actiniformis is a solitary species of mushroom coral, a large polyp stony coral in the family Fungiidae. This coral is found in shallow water in the Indo-Pacific region. It is a zooxanthellate species. It is a popular coral in the reef aquarium trade; wild populations are threatened by disease, climate change, and over-collecting, and the species is considered vulnerable by the IUCN.
Heteropsammia cochlea, also known as walking dendro, is a species of small solitary coral in the family Dendrophylliidae that is native to the Indo-Pacific area.
Cycloseris curvata is a species of disc coral in the family Fungiidae. Cyclosteris curvata is a mostly solitary free living scleractinian disc coral found in the indo-pacific region. They grow on soft substrates and are known to tolerate turbid waters. Like other anthozoan corals they lack a medusa stage characteristic of other cnidarians. They have been observed as both green and brown in color in the field.
Pleuractis is a genus of mushroom corals in the family Fungiidae. Members of the genus are found growing on reefs in the Indo-Pacific.
Heterocyathus aequicostatus is a small species of coral in the family Caryophylliidae in the order Scleractinia, the stony corals. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region. It is a large polyp, solitary, free-living coral and is usually found on soft substrates.
Cycloseris cyclolites is a species of disc coral in the family Fungiidae. It was first described by the French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck in 1815. It is native to the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region where it is found on soft sediment in shallow water.
Media related to Cycloseris distorta at Wikimedia Commons