©Andy Lewis: Macro image of Acropora millepora showing the typical form of the Axial and radial corallites
Colours
Distinguishing features
A corymbose species that forms small colonies up to about 1m in breadth. The branchlets are a similar length, and the axial polyp is relatively distinct, with a similar colouration to the rest of the colony. The radial corallites are all similar in size, and have a distinctive flared lip, giving the branches a scaly appearance. Most specimens are orange to light brown in colour, but rare colonies have a distinct blue-purple colouration.
Size
- Size data has not been obtained.
Synonyms
Similar taxa
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Animalia:
species: Acropora spathulata
has thicker (> 2 cm) and more widely-spaced branches (contributed by Zoe Richards).
Distribution
©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution
Distribution and habitat preferences
Protected shallow back reef, lagoonal, and reef flat habitats.
Abundant in shallow habitats around Lizard Island.
Behaviour
Like most Acroporidae, this species is a hermaphrodite broadcast spawner, releasing gametes shortly after dark in the few days after the full moon in the warmer months between November and February.
Web resources
References
- Abrego, D., M.J.H. Van Oppen and B.L. Willis (2009). Onset of algal endosymbiont specificity varies among closely related species of Acropora corals during early ontogeny, Molecular Ecology, 18: 3532-3543.
- Alvarez-Noriega, M., A.H. Baird, M. Dornelas, J.S. Madin and S.R. Connolly (2018). Negligible effect of competition on coral colony growth. Ecology, 99 (6): 1347-1356. LIRS catalog number 2239.
- Babcock, R.C., G.D. Bull, P.L. Harrison, A.J. Heyward, J.K. Oliver, C.C. Wallace and B.L. Willis (1986). Synchronous spawnings of 105 scleractinian coral species on the Great Barrier Reef, Marine Biology, 90: 379-394. LIRS catalog number 300.
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