Lithophyllon repanda

Lithophyllon repanda is a species of mushroom or disc coral in the family Fungiidae.This species is able to move to another location on occasion. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) rated it as a least-concern species and it was originally described by Dana in 1846. It occurs at depths of 1 to 30 metres (3 ft 3 in to 98 ft 5 in).

Lithophyllon repanda
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Anthozoa
Order: Scleractinia
Family: Fungiidae
Genus: Lithophyllon
Species:
L. repanda
Binomial name
Lithophyllon repanda
(Dana, 1846)[2]
Synonyms
List
  • Fungia discus Dana, 1846
  • Fungia integra Dana, 1846
  • Fungia linnaei Milne Edwards & Haime, 1851
  • Fungia repanda Dana, 1846
  • Fungia samboangensis Vaughan, 1906

Description

L. repanda has thick and circular polyps with diameters of up to 300 millimetres (12 in), which are either arched or flat. Its septa are roughly equal and the septal teeth are visible. Its tentacles extend in the day and are pale in colour, but the species is without tentacular loes. It has granular costal spines and the species is brown in colour.[3] It reaches diameters of up to 23.5 centimetres (9.3 in).[1]

Distribution

It is found in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, the southwestern and northern Indian Ocean, eastern Africa, northern, eastern, and western Australia, the East China Sea, Japan, and the western and central Pacific Ocean.[1] It is common species and no population figures are available, but its population is believed to be declining in line with the global decline in coral reefs. It is threatened by coral disease, climate change, bleaching, predators, human activity, fishing, and parasites. A 1991 study discovered that 75% of observed specimens were bleached due to rising sea temperatures. It is rated as a least-concern species by the IUCN and is listed under CITES Appendix II.[1] It is found at depths of between 1 and 30 metres (3 ft 3 in and 98 ft 5 in) on flats and slopes of reefs.[1]

Taxonomy

It was originally described as Fungia repanda by Dana in 1846.[2]

References
  1. "Fungia repanda". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  2. Fungia The Coral Hub. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
  3. "Fungia repanda". Australian Institute of Marine Science. Retrieved 17 August 2015.

Further reading
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