Mussa (genus)

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Mussa
Mussa angulosa.jpg
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Anthozoa
Order: Scleractinia
Family: Mussidae
Genus: Mussa
Oken, 1815 [2]
Species:
M. angulosa
Binomial name
Mussa angulosa
(Pallas, 1766)
Synonyms

(Species)

  • Madrepora angulosaPallas, 1766

Mussa is a genus of stony coral in the family Mussidae. It is monotypic, being represented by the single species Mussa angulosa, commonly known as the spiny or large flower coral. It is found on reefs in shallow waters in the Caribbean Sea, the Bahamas and the Gulf of Mexico.

Contents

Description

Mussa angulosa is a colonial species and the whole clump forms a low dome that may reach 50 centimetres (20 in) across. The corallites are phaceloid, that is they have a tubular form growing from a common base, in series of one to three, or occasionally up to five. The individual corallites are large, being 25 to 45 mm (1.0 to 1.8 in) in diameter and up to 6 mm (0.2 in) high. There are four cycles of septa in each corallite, nearly equal in size; they are narrow and curved, with wide spacing. [3] [4] The individual polyps are very large, sometimes reaching a length of 12 centimetres (4.7 in) and a diameter of 4 centimetres (1.6 in). They completely obscure the short branches of the stony skeleton on which they occur. During the day the polyps appear fleshy, but during the night they expand further and each is fringed by a rim of short tentacles. The colour of the polyps is variable, being grey or pale brown with green, pink and purple shades. [5] [6] The tissues of this coral contain symbiotic single-celled algae called zooxanthellae. These are photosynthetic and absorb energy from the sun to create organic compounds which are used by the coral. [2]

Distribution

Mussa angulosa occurs in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the Bahamas, and on reefs and banks off the coast of Texas and southern Florida. It is found in water between 3 and 60 metres (10 and 197 ft) deep but most often between 10 and 30 metres (33 and 98 ft). [7]

Biology

Mussa angulosa is a reef-building species and is aggressive, attacking other fast-growing corals that start to grow close by and threaten to overgrow it or shade it. [5] Its cnidocytes are so powerful that no other Caribbean corals can successfully attack it. [5] It leans away from the current as it grows and reacts adversely to increased sedimentation. [7]

Status

There are no specific threats facing this coral and the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species lists it as being of "Least Concern". It is however probably declining because of the degradation of coral reefs by mechanical damage, climate change and ocean acidification. It is susceptible to coral bleaching and the coral diseases that affect stressed corals. Off the coasts of the United States it is present in various marine parks and other conservation areas, in both of which it is protected. [1]

Related Research Articles

Pillar coral Species of coral

Pillar coral is a hard coral found in the western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Dendrogyra. It is a digitate coral -that is, it resembles fingers or a cluster of cigars, growing up from the sea floor without any secondary branching. It is large and can grow on both flat and sloping surfaces at depths down to 20 m (65 ft). It is one of the few types of hard coral in which the polyps can commonly be seen feeding during the day.

Mussidae Family of corals

Mussidae is a family of stony coral in the order Scleractinia. Following a taxonomic revision in 2012, the family is now restricted to species found in the Atlantic Ocean, with Pacific species transferred to the new family Lobophylliidae. Many species are referred to as brain coral because their generally spheroid form and grooved surface resembles the convolutions of a brain.

<i>Porites astreoides</i> Species of coral

Porites astreoides, commonly known as mustard hill coral or yellow porites, is a colonial species of stony coral in the family Poritidae.

<i>Favia fragum</i> Species of coral

Favia fragrum is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Mussidae. It is commonly known as the golfball coral and is found in tropical waters on either side of the Atlantic Ocean.

<i>Eusmilia</i> Genus of corals

Eusmilia is a genus of stony coral in the family Meandrinidae. It is a monotypic genus represented by the species Eusmilia fastigiata, commonly known as the smooth flower coral. It is found on reefs in the Caribbean Sea.

<i>Siderastrea siderea</i> Species of coral

Siderastrea siderea, commonly known as massive starlet coral or round starlet coral, is a stony coral in the family Siderastreidae. It is found in shallow parts of the western Atlantic Ocean as solid boulder-shaped or domed structures.

<i>Siderastrea radians</i> Species of coral

Siderastrea radians, also known as the lesser starlet coral or the shallow-water starlet coral, is a stony coral in the family Siderastreidae. It is found in shallow parts of the western Atlantic Ocean as small, solid mounds or encrusting sheets.

<i>Diploria</i> Genus of corals

Diploria is a monotypic genus of massive reef building stony corals in the family Mussidae. It is represented by a single species, Diploria labyrinthiformis, commonly known as grooved brain coral and is found in the western Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It has a familiar, maze-like appearance.

<i>Pseudodiploria strigosa</i> Species of coral

Pseudodiploria strigosa, the symmetrical brain coral, is a colonial species of stony coral in the family Mussidae. It occurs on reefs in shallow water in the West Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It grows slowly and lives to a great age.

<i>Pseudodiploria clivosa</i> Species of coral

Pseudodiploria clivosa, the knobby brain coral, is a colonial species of stony coral in the family Mussidae. It occurs in shallow water in the West Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

<i>Scolymia lacera</i> Species of coral

Scolymia lacera, the fleshy disk coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Mussidae. It occurs on reefs in shallow waters in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, Bermuda and southern Florida.

<i>Porites porites</i> Species of coral

Porites porites, commonly known as hump coral or finger coral, is a species of stony coral in the genus Porites. It is found in the Caribbean Sea and western Atlantic Ocean and also along the coast of West Africa.

<i>Dichocoenia</i> Genus of corals

Dichocoenia is a monotypic genus of stony coral in the family Meandrinidae. It is represented by a single species, Dichocoenia stokesii, which is commonly known as pineapple coral, elliptical star coral, or pancake star coral. It is found in the Caribbean Sea and the western Atlantic Ocean. Dichocoenia stokesii has irregular calyces and its form can be either a massive, hemispherical hump or a flat, platform-like structure.

<i>Meandrina meandrites</i> Species of coral

Meandrina meandrites, commonly known as maze coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Meandrinidae. It is found primarily on outer coral reef slopes in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.

<i>Isophyllia sinuosa</i> Species of coral

Isophyllia sinuosa, the sinuous cactus coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Mussidae. It is found in shallow water in the tropical western Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea.

<i>Lobophyllia hemprichii</i> Species of coral

Lobophyllia hemprichii, commonly called lobed brain coral, lobed cactus coral or largebrain root coral, is a species of large polyp stony coral in the family Lobophylliidae. It is found in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. In its specific name Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg honoured his late partner the Prussian naturalist Wilhelm Hemprich; they were among the first to study the marine life of the Red Sea.

<i>Orbicella franksi</i> Species of coral

Orbicella franksi, commonly known as boulder star coral, is a colonial stony coral in the family Merulinidae. It is native to shallow waters in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, Bermuda and Florida, and is listed as a "vulnerable species" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

<i>Agaricia agaricites</i> Species of coral

Agaricia agaricites, commonly known as lettuce coral or tan lettuce-leaf coral, is a species of colonial stony corals in the family Agariciidae. This coral is found in shallow waters in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. It is a common species and the IUCN has assessed its status as being of "least concern".

<i>Isophyllia</i> Genus of corals

Isophyllia is a genus of stony coral in the subfamily Mussinae of the family Mussidae.

<i>Manicina areolata</i> Species of coral

Manicina areolata, commonly known as rose coral, is a colonial species of stony coral. It occurs in shallow water in the West Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea, sometimes as small solid heads and sometimes as unattached cone-shaped forms.

References

  1. 1 2 Aronson, R.; Bruckner, A.; Moore, J.; Precht, B.; E. Weil (2008). "Mussa angulosa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008: e.T133457A3754872. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T133457A3754872.en . Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 Hoeksema, Bert (2013). "Mussa Oken 1815". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 2013-02-25.
  3. ↑ "Mussa Oken 1815". Neogene Marine Biota of Tropical America. 2004. Retrieved 2013-02-25.
  4. ↑ Budd, Ann F.; Fukami, Hironobu; Smith, Nathan D.; Knowlton, Nancy (2012). "Taxonomic classification of the reef coral family Mussidae (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Scleractinia)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 166 (3): 465–529. doi: 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2012.00855.x .
  5. 1 2 3 Colin, Patrick L. (1978). Marine Invertebrates and Plants of the Living Reef . T.F.H. Publications. p.  270–274. ISBN   0-86622-875-6.
  6. ↑ "Mussa angulosa (Pallas 1766)". Coralpedia. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  7. 1 2 "Mussa angulosa (Pallas 1766)". NatureServe Explorer. July 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
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