Kingdom Animalia Phylum Cnidaria Order Scleractinia | Family Poritidae Rank Genus Subclass Hexacorallia | |
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Similar Goniopora, Scleractinia, Blastomussa, Favites, Favia | ||
Alveopora is a genus of colonial stony corals in the family Poritidae. Members of this genus are native to the Indo-Pacific region and are often found on reef slopes in turbid water. They are generally uncommon.
Contents
Alveopora timelapse by mark flato
Characteristics
Alveopora has a very light and porous skeleton consisting of interconnecting rods and spines. The colonies are either massive or branching and often have irregular shapes. The corallites have walls that are very perforated and septa that are mostly composed of fine spines which may meet in the centre forming a tangle of columella. The polyps are large and fleshy and are normally extended both day and night. They have twelve tentacles, often with swollen knob-like tips. They have symbiotic zooxanthellae in their tissues and are usually white, pale grey, cream or light brown, sometimes with contrasting coloured tentacles.
Species
This genus contains the following species:
