Kingdom Animalia Class Anthozoa Order Alcyonacea Rank Genus | Phylum Cnidaria Subclass Octocorallia Suborder Scleraxonia | |
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Similar Melithaeidae, Acabaria, Melithaea, Acanthogorgia, Pinnigorgia | ||
Clathraria is a genus of corals in the family Melithaeidae. Members of the genus are commonly known as sea fans and are found in tropical regions of the Indo-Pacific. The type species is Clathraria rubrinodis.
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Description
Members of the genus Clathraria are arborescent colonial corals forming fans or bushes. The axis or main skeletal "trunk" is jointed, there being nodes, flexible horny joints, separated by internodes composed of hard, calcareous material. The branches divide off at the nodes which are often swollen. The minute calcareous spicules in the flexible membrane called the mesoglea that covers the skeleton are called sclerites. The identity of these spicules is important for identification purposes and in this genus they are predominantly foliate capstans and foliate spheroids, but also include plain spindles, plain capstans and small clubs. In the corallites, the cups surrounding the polyps, the sclerites include longer clubs. Members of this genus do not have the unicellular symbiotic algae Zooxanthellae in their tissues that many other corals do. Colonies vary in colour but tend to be white or shades of yellow, ochre, orange, red and brown. The nodes and internodes are often contrasting colours.
Species
The World Register of Marine Species includes the following species in the genus: