''Seriatopora'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

stony corals Scleractinia, also called stony corals or hard corals, are marine animals in the phylum Cnidaria that build themselves a hard skeleton. The individual animals are known as polyps and have a cylindrical body crowned by an oral disc in which a mo ...

in the family

Pocilloporidae The Pocilloporidae are a family of stony corals in the order Scleractinia occurring in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Description Pocilloporids are colonial and most species are reef-building. They are very variable in size and shape, some being ...

. They are commonly known as needle corals, birdsnest corals or finger corals. They are native to the Red Sea, the Indo-Pacific region and some parts of the Central Pacific Ocean.

Characteristics

Members of this genus form small bushes with anastomising (linking) branches. The branch tips are sharply tapered and the growth forms are variable, depending on the level of light and the movement of water. The

corallite A corallite is the skeletal cup, formed by an individual stony coral polyp, in which the polyp sits and into which it can retract. The cup is composed of aragonite, a crystalline form of calcium carbonate, and is secreted by the polyp. Corallit ...

s are arranged in neat rows and the polyps only extend at night. The colour of these corals can be yellow, orange, pink, green or brown.

Species

The following

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

are listed in the

World Register of Marine Species The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scientific specialist ...

(WoRMS): * '' Seriatopora aculeata'' Quelch, 1886 * '' Seriatopora caliendrum'' Ehrenberg, 1834 * '' Seriatopora dentritica'' Veron, 2000 * '' Seriatopora guttata'' Veron, 2000 * ''

Seriatopora hystrix ''Seriatopora hystrix'' is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It forms a branching clump and is commonly known as thin birdsnest coral. It grows in shallow water on fore-reef slopes or in sheltered lagoons, the type ...

'' Dana, 1846 * '' Seriatopora octoptera'' Ehrenberg, 1834 * '' Seriatopora stellata'' Quelch, 1886

References

Pocilloporidae Taxa named by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck Scleractinia genera {{scleractinia-stub