''Goniopora columna'' is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Poritidae.

Distribution

This species is native to the western and eastern Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, including the Red Sea, the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden ( ar, خليج عدن, so, Gacanka Cadmeed 𐒅𐒖𐒐𐒕𐒌 𐒋𐒖𐒆𐒗𐒒) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channe ...

, the Persian Gulf,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, South-east Asia,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and East China Sea. It can be found in

, Bahrain, Cambodia,

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Comoros The Comoros,, ' officially the Union of the Comoros,; ar, الاتحاد القمري ' is an independent country made up of three islands in southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. It ...

, Djibouti, Egypt,

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

, Guam, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel,

, Jordan, Kuwait, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Micronesia, Mozambique.

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...

, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Qatar,

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Viet Nam and Yemen.

Habitat

This reef-associated species occurs in tropical shallow waters and in sheltered, sandy or lagoon environments, at depths of 2 to 15 m. It may also occur in turbid waters. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being " Near Threatened". These corals appear moderately susceptible to bleaching, especially in turbid waters, which can help to protect them.

Description

This species develops hemispherical or irregular columnar mound shaped colonies with a neat appearance and dead basal parts. The color of the polips may be yellow, brown or green, usually with different color in the oral discs. The diameter of the small and rounded calices ranges from about , with a uniform bundle of tentacles. The columellae are rather large and long. The living polyps can reach a length up to .WoRMS World Register of Marine Species
/ref> This species is quite similar to ''

Goniopora stokesi ''Goniopora stokesi'' is a species of colonial stony coral. As with other species in genus ''Goniopora'', it has the common names 'flowerpot coral' and 'daisy coral'. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) categorises its stat ...

'' and ''

Goniopora lobata ''Goniopora'', often called flowerpot coral, is a genus of colonial stony coral found in lagoons and turbid water conditions. ''Goniopora'' have numerous daisy-like polyps that extend outward from the base, each tipped with 24 stinging t ...

''. It differs from the other two especially for the columnar shape of the colonies and for the large light-colored oral disc.

Biology

Like most corals, ''Goniopora columna'' reproduce asexually. They usually feed on plankton. Mature gametes are spawned through the mouth. The zygote develops into a planktonic planula larva.Nemenzo, F. Sr. 1986 Guide to Philippine Flora and Fauna. Corals. Natural Resources Management Center, Ministry of Natural Resources and University of the Philippines. 5:273 pp.

References

External links

Corals of the world
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3955411 Poritidae Animals described in 1846 Cnidarians of the Indian Ocean Cnidarians of the Pacific Ocean