hard corals text index | photo index
Phylum Cnidaria > Class Anthozoa > Subclass Zoantharia/Hexacorallia
Photo index of hard corals on Singapore shores
Polyps with long tentacles often hiding hard skeleton when polyps are extended




Brain anchor coral
Euphyllia ancora



Branching anchor coral
Euphyllia paraancora



Frog spawn coral
Euphyllia paradivisa



Pearl bubble coral
Plerogyra sinuosa
 
Colonies 10-20cm. Corallites forming meandering valleys with separate walls. Tentacles with a U-shaped tip. Colours blue and brown with bluish tips. Seen on our Southern shores. Colonies 10-20cm. Corallites trumpet-shaped. Tentacles with U-shaped tips. Colours green, brown and purple with white or bluish tips. Seen on our Southern shores. Colony 10-20cm. Corallites trumpet-shaped. Tentacles are branched at the tips into masses of rounded and U-shaped tips. Colours green and brown with white or bluish tips. Rarely seen, on our Southern shores Colony 10-20cm. Corallites brain-like meandering made up of large coin-like disks. In daylight covered in bubbles. Colours beige. Rarely seen, on our Southern shores  
         



Sunflower
mushroom coral

Heliofungia actiniformis



Torch anchor coral
Euphyllia glabrenscens
 



Small goniopora coral
Goniopora sp.



Anemone coral
Goniopora sp.
Skeleton disc-shaped (generally 10-15cm), lies unattached to the bottom. Thin walls with rounded 'teeth' radiate from the centre. Single slit-like mouth. Tentacles thick and long (looks like udon noodles) with a bulbous white tip. Colours usually brown but sometimes also bright green or bluish. Sometimes seen on some of our shores. Colonies 10-20cm. Corallites trumpet-shaped. Tentacles with rounded tips. Colours beige, brown and blue. Sometimes seen on our Southern shores.   Colonies 10-12cm, boulder-shaped or encrusting. Polyps (0.5-1cm in diameter), 24 tentacles, short body column (0.5-1cm). Corallites circular or hexagonal. Colours seen include purple, pink, greenish, yellow and brown. Commonly seen on many of our shores, especially on our Southern shores. Colonies 10-12cm, boulder-shaped or clusters of short, fat columns with rounded tops. Polyps (0.5-1cm in diameter), 24 tentacles, long body column (2-5cm). Colours seen include purple, pink, brown and bluish. Commonly seen on many of our shores, especially on our Southern shores.

These are NOT hard corals, they are sea anemones



Snaky
anemone

Macrodactyla doreensis



Magnificent
anemone

Heteractis magnifica



Bulb tip
anemone

Entacmaea quadricolor
   
25-30cm. Tentacles long (about 10m) and snake-like, tapering. White eye-shaped verrucae on the underside. On coral rubble. Sometimes seen on our Northern shores. 30-50cm. Long blunt-tipped tentacles (5-8cm), body column blue, green, red, white or brown with longitudinal rows of translucent verrucae. On coral rubble. Common Pulau Hantu and Kusu Island.
10-20cm. Tentacles 4-6cm long with distintive bulbs at tips, thought sometimes the bulbs are not 'inflated'. In coral rubble. Sometimes seen on our Southern shores.
   



photo index of
cnidarians on this site
Phylum Cnidaria
with hard skeleton

polyp shape
long tentacles

colony shape
  leafy

crinkled


plate


branching
  thick branches
thin branches
  boulder
  Corallite shape=
ring
hexagonal
brain or maze

others

colony unattached
(mushroom hard coral)
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