Celleporaria sp.
©Lyle Vail: Celleporaria sp. (dark branching colony) with symbiotic hydrozoans (Zanclea sp. 1) in a shallow cavern at Cobia Hole, Lizard Island. Identified by Dr Daniela Pica.
©Anne Hoggett: Celleporaria sp. (dark branching colony) with symbiotic hydrozoan Zanclea sp. 1 (white hair-like protrusions) in an underhang at Cod Hole near Lizard Island. Identified by Dr Daniela Pica.
©Anne Hoggett: Celleporaria sp. (dark branching colony) with symbiotic hydrozoans (Zanclea sp. 1) at Cobia Hole, Lizard Island.
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Bryozoa
Family
Celleporidae
Genus
Celleporaria
Species
Celleporaria sp.
Colours
Distinguishing features
Dark-coloured colonies up to 20 cm wide with a hard, branching skeleton, in association with symbiotic hydrozoans (Zanclea sp. 1) showing as white, hair-like protrusions extending up to about 5 mm from the skeleton. Found in shallow caverns.
Identified as genus Celleporaria due to similarity to photos of Celleporaria sibogae in iNaturalist (accessed 18 Mar 2023), a species described in 1986 from Indonesia which also associates with Zanclea hydrozoans. Celleporaria sibogae does not appear to have been recorded from Australia to date (ALA accessed 18 Mar 2023).
Size
- Size data has not been obtained.
