Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Acropora monticulosa (Acropora monticulosa), recorded as Endangered
Acropora monticulosa (Acropora monticulosa). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Endangered

Acropora monticulosa

Acropora monticulosa

Acropora monticulosa is a staghorn coral in the family Acroporidae (order Scleractinia), recorded as Endangered.

Status
Endangered
Scientific name
Acropora monticulosa
CITES
Appendix II
Taxonomy
Anthozoa · Scleractinia · Acroporidae · Acropora

Appearance

Acropora monticulosa is cream or blue in colour and has a similar appearance to Acropora globiceps and Acropora retusa.

It was described by Brüggemann in 1879.

Range and habitat

The species occurs in the northern and southwestern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean. It also occurs in the Tuamotus. The species is found at depths of between 1 and 12 metres (3 ft 3 in and 39 ft 4 in) in tropical shallow reefs on upper slopes. Acropora monticulosa is a acroporid coral found in the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Diet

By day the polyps sit in sunlit water and feed the algae in their tissue; at night they can catch plankton. A colony does not walk. It lives or dies on that patch of reef.

A stony-coral colony is fixed. Growth, bleaching, and death happen in place. Collection and gear damage remove the skeleton as well as the tissue.

In crisis

CITES lists this taxon on Appendix II. Confirm the current appendix on the CITES checklist.

Branching acroporids are among the first corals to bleach in a marine heatwave and among the first to smash in a storm or under an anchor.

Acropora monticulosa is Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Acropora monticulosa, Wikidata item Q3937231. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Same genus

Photograph of Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Elkhorn coral

Acropora palmata
Photograph of Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Staghorn coral

Acropora cervicornis
Photograph of Acropora aculeus (Acropora aculeus), recorded as EndangeredEN

Acropora aculeus

Acropora aculeus
Photograph of Acropora acuminata (Acropora acuminata), recorded as EndangeredEN

Acropora acuminata

Acropora acuminata

Quick answers

What is Acropora monticulosa?
Acropora monticulosa is a staghorn coral in the family Acroporidae (order Scleractinia).
What is the conservation status of Acropora monticulosa?
Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Acropora monticulosa. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Acropora monticulosa live?
The species occurs in the northern and southwestern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea and the oceanic west Pacific Ocean. It also occurs in the Tuamotus.
Why is Acropora monticulosa in crisis?
Branching acroporids are among the first corals to bleach in a marine heatwave and among the first to smash in a storm or under an anchor.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Acropora monticulosa?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Acropora monticulosa a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.