Turbinaria heronensis

Turbinaria heronensis
Conservation status
Vulnerable  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Cnidaria
Class:	Hexacorallia
Order:	Scleractinia
Family:	Dendrophylliidae
Genus:	Turbinaria
Species:	T. heronensis
Binomial name
Turbinaria heronensis Wells, 1958

Turbinaria heronensis, commonly known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region where it occurs in shallow water in Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, the Philippines and Australia. It is a zooxanthellate coral that houses symbiont dinoflagellates in its tissues. It is an uncommon species and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has rated it as "vulnerable". It was described by Wells in 1958.

Description

This colonial species reaches diameters of up to 50 centimetres (20 in) and its colonies frequently divide. The species is green, yellow or brown in colour and its corallites are tube-shaped and long. This zooxanthellate stony coral houses symbiont dinoflagellates in its tissues.

Distribution

This rare coral has unknown population figures but the population is considered to be decreasing; the species is likely to be threatened by the global reduction of coral reefs, the increase of temperature causing coral bleaching, climate change, human activity, parasites, and disease. It is found in the eastern Indian Ocean and western central, northwestern and southwestern Pacific Ocean, in the countries of Fiji, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines. It is found at depths of between 5 and 15 metres (16 and 49 ft) in subtropical reefs on slopes and flats. The IUCN has rated the conservation status of this species as being of "vulnerable". It is a rare species but it has a large range. T. conspicua is listed under CITES Appendix II.

Taxonomy

It was described as Turbinaria heronensis by Wells in 1958.