Isopora coral (no English common name)
Isopora crateriformis
Valid name (WoRMS, AphiaID 730691, checked 2026-10-31).
Possibly present in the Maldives
- English
- Isopora coral (no English common name)
- Scientific
- Isopora crateriformis
- Dhivehi
- No recorded Dhivehi name
- Group
- Hard corals
- Depth and habitat
- Reef-associated, recorded from 0 to 48 m
- IUCN status
- EN · EndangeredEndangered (EN), assessed 2023CITES Appendix II
- Record in the Maldives
- Possibly present
Description
An encrusting or low, crusty coral related to Acropora, with a flat, bumpy surface and no obvious branches. It grows on wave-exposed reef flats and reef fronts. Colonies are usually brown, cream or pinkish. Its identification needs a close look at the cups.
In the Maldives
Recorded from the Maldives: iNaturalist research-grade observations in the Maldives (n=1). Only one kind of evidence was found, so it is listed as possibly present. Branching and table corals of this kind were among the worst hit by the 1998 and 2016 mass bleaching events in the Maldives.
Sources
- sealifebase.se /summary/Isopora-crateriformis.html
- marinespecies.org /aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=730691
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:640x427-isopora-craterformis-coral.jpg
Dhivehi name source: No species-level Dhivehi name found in Dhivehi Wikipedia, SeaLifeBase (country: Maldives) or MRS/MMRI invertebrate publications.