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Porites australiensis

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Colony and close-up with fanworm, Guam	63KB
Image:	Colony, Guam	47KB
Image:	Colony with Christmas Tree Worm, Guam	70KB
Image:	Colony, Guam	63KB
Image:	Colony, Palau	78KB

General Information

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Chagos - French Polynesia

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Marine, near-shore

KEY FEATURES: Gp.8 This species differs by having shallow calices (1.0-1.3mm diameter), thick septa, and large granulated pali. Porites "general" has closely-spaced ±polygonal calices, 0.7-1.5mm diameter, with conspicuous porous walls of rods and flakes, 12 porous lattice-like septa, some septa having an inner-spine (=pali), and the columella is pinnacle-like.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Indistinguishable from other massive Porites, except by expert comparative studies. Lacks fused triplet of P.lutea and holes between septa are distinct.

Enlarged Image of 'Porites australiensis'

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Porites australiensis (Vaughan, 1918)
SYNONYMS: Porites (Porites) australiensis

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CNIDARIA (=Coelenterates); ANTHOZOA; ZOANTHARIA (=Hexacorallia); Scleractinia (=Madreporaria); PORITIDAE

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Cooks: specimens, G.McCormack (1980s?), NHP#GM044 - 045.

References:
Special Reference: x

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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