species: Porites cylindrica in ALA: Lizard Island (Lizard Island Field Guide)
ALA: Lizard Island > Animalia > Cnidaria > Corals and similar animals > Scleractinia > Poritidae > Porites spp (massive) > Porites cylindrica (gallery)
Porites cylindrica


©Andy Lewis: A grey colony of Porites cylindrica at the lagoon entrance channel, Lizard Island

©Andy Lewis: A macro image of Porites cylindrica showing the typical structure of corallites

©Andy Lewis: Macro image of Porites cylindrica with Porites rus at bottom left

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Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Cnidaria
Class Hexacorallia
Order Scleractinia
Family Poritidae
Genus Porites
Species Porites cylindrica
Status near threatened

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Lizard Island Field Guide
Lizard Island area: all known taxa

Colours

         

Distinguishing features

A coral that forms branched colonies that can reach very large sizes. Corallites are small and embedded, and like all Porites species, they share common walls. Colour is typically light yellow-brown or grey. (Contributed by Andy Lewis)

Size

  • Size data has not been obtained.

Synonyms

Similar taxa

Distribution


©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution

Distribution and habitat preferences

Protected lagoons and back reef margins.

Can be found in most habitats around Lizard Island.

Behaviour

Crown-of-thorns starfish is a common species at Lizard Island that forms large mono-specific stands in many areas. It is resistant to feeding by Crown-of-thorns starfish and so has survived the 1990s outbreak with little loss.

This species is a gonochoric broadcast spawner.

Web resources

References

  • Almany, G.R. (2004). Priority effects in coral reef fish communities of the Great Barrier Reef, Ecology, 85: 2872-2880. LIRS catalog number 879.
  • Baird, A.H. (2001). The ecology of coral larvae: settlement patterns, habitat selection and the length of the larval phase, Ph.D. thesis, James Cook University. LIRS catalog number 716.
  • Baird, A.H., J.R. Guest and B.L. Willis (2009). Systematic and biogeographical patterns in the reproductive biology of scleractinian corals, Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, 40: 551-571.
  • View all references