Caribbean Coral Diaries – Porites astreoides

Porites astreoides

Porites astreoidesis a lumpy bumpy coral that is hard to miss. Everywhere you dive in the Caribbean you are sure to find this iconic species.

The size and shape ofPorites astreoidescolonies depend on where the coral is growing. Colonies found in shallow water will tend to be a more dome shaped, colonies growing in deeper water will having a plating or encrusting form.
While most colonies grow into small lumpy mounds up to 60 centimeters (24 in) in diameter, large encrusting plates can be several meters across.
It is hard to mistakePoritescoral, especially when looking at the overall bumpy colony shape.
Poritesshould not be confused with other massive encrusting species likeOrbicella.尽管两个珊瑚在仔细检查时具有相似的菌落形状，但珊瑚岩结构却大不相同。

Small Corallites

The surface ofPoritescoral has small closely set corallites that give the colony a porous look.Orbicella具有突出的珊瑚岩，延伸到珊瑚的表面上方。息肉的息肉Poritescoral are generally retracted during the day, although you can often see tiny tentacles peeking out from the edges of each corallite.
P. astreoides殖民地可以是黄色，黄绿色，灰色或浅褐色，通用名称是芥末山珊瑚或黄色的陶土。P. astreoidesis a photosynthetic coral and is usually found in shallow water less than 15 meters (49 ft) deep, however, it can be found up to depths of 50 meters (160 ft).
If you are just learning to identify coral,Porites astreoidesis a great place to start. This coral is common throughout its range and you will be hard pressed to finish a dive in the Caribbean without spotting a single colony.