AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdel ToroArchipelago,Panama

RodrigoCarballoBolaos,Janina Seemann,CindyT.Gonzalez
This field identification guide was developed to facilitate species identification of hard corals while working in the field. It provides pictures of the shape, unique characters of each species and a short description to easily identify all 58 species occurring in Bocas del Toro. The pictures were taken2010 2012intheArchipelagoofBocasdelToro,Panama. Speciesnamesmarkedwithgreycolorarethemostcommonspecies found inthearea. Those pictures of species missing were acquired from other authors that haveworkedintheCaribbean(Picturereferences).

Picturereferences
AllpicturesweretakenbyJanina Seemann andCindyGonzalezexceptforthefollowing: Agaricia grahamae (small), Madracis asperula (small), Mycetophyllia reesi (big), Oculina diffusa (both) were taken from Veron JEN (2000) Corals of the World. Australian Institute of MarineScience,Townsville,Australia. Agaricia grahamae (big), Agaricia undata (small), Dichocoenia stockesi (both), Madracis pharensis (small), Manicina areolata (small), Millepora squarrosa (both), Mycetophyllia reesi (small) were taken from Coralpedia v1.0. A guide to Caribbean corals, octocorals and sponges, http://coralpedia.bio.warwick.ac.uk/ Scolymia lacera (small), Scolymia wellsi (small), were taken from Neogene Marine Biota of TropicalAmerica(NMiTA),http://eusmilia.geology.uiowa.edu/index.htm Madracis asperula (big)fromwww.cabocanarias.com (PhotobyPhilippeGuillaume). Phyllangia americana (small)fromwww.reefsanctuary.com;(big)fromwww.thereeftank.com

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama

BRANCHING / PILLAR CORALS

Acropora cervicornis Staghorn Coral
Arborescent,with cylindricalbranches; axialcorallitesare distinctive

Acropora palmata Elkhorn Coral

Brancheshorizontally flattened;corallitesare tubularandirregularin length

Acropora prolifera Fused Staghorn Coral

Hybridbetween bothAcropora species,branching, manytoppolyps

Madracis asperula Pointed Pencil Coral

Coloniesofclumpsof finetwistedbranches; primarily azooxanthellate species

Madracis decactis Ten-Ray Star Coral

Coloniesarelowand encrustingwithshort stumpynodulesand shortbranches

Madracis mirabilis Yellow Pencil Coral

Coloniesarebranching withdenselypacked finderswithrounded, blunttips

Oculina diffusa Ivory Bush Coral

Clumpsofthickbranches withlargeraised corallites,often encrustedandentangled withotherorganisms

Porites divaricata Thin Finger Coral

Branchesareslender (<1cm)andwidely spaced,oftendivided attheirtips;with tissueatthebase

P.divaricata

P.porites

Porites furcata Branched Finger Coral

Intermediatewidth(1 2cm)tightly,compact andfingerlikebranches withroundedtip; extensivecolonieswith deadbasalparts

Porites porites Finger Coral

Thickbranches,stubby withenlargedblunttips, coveredwithcorallites onthedistaltips; colonieswithdeadbasal parts

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama

LEAF / PLATE / SHEET

Agaricia agaricites Lettuce Coral
Amixtureofencrusting sheets,thickleavesand flatplates.Alsoknownas A.danai orA.purpurea

Agaricia fragilis Fragile Saucer Coral

Leafycoralsformplatesor bowlswithconcentric ridgeswithlongvalleys; corallitesonlyontopside ofcolony

Agaricia grahamae Grahams Sheet Coral

Leafy,similartoA. fragilis,butsurfacewith smootherappearance andcorallitesarelarger andwidelyspaced

Agaricia humilis Low Relie Lettuce Coral

Formsmall,rounded, massiveshapedcolonies, manyencrusting;rowsof corallitesareseparatedby pointedandtallerridges

Agaricia lamarcki Whitestar Sheet Coral

Thickonesidedplates arrangeinwhorls;white starfishshapedpolyps, contrastingwiththe brownroundedridges

Agaricia tenuifolia Thin Leaf Lettuce Coral

Thinuprightbifacial blades;margins contorted,elongate anddividedirregularly

Agaricia undata Scroll Coral

Foundindeepwater, flatorspreading plates;ridgessquares notroundedor pointed

Leptoseris cucullata Sunray Lettuce Coral

Leafy,usuallysingle whorl,bigcalices stronglyinclined outwardstowardsthe edgeoftheplace

Mycetophyllia reesi Ridgeless Cactus Coral

Thinlaminae, conformingtheshape ofthesubstrate, attachedcentrallyor ataside

Porites colonensis Hump Coral

Thinplateswithsmall attachmentarea, smoothsurface,like honeycombstructure

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama

MASSIVE / ENCRUSTING CORALS

Montastraea annularis Lobed Star Coral
Coloniesofclosely packed,separate nodulesorcolumns; edgescommonlynot growing

Montastraea cavernosa Great Star Coral

Coloniesforming bouldersordomes,or flatplates,distinctfleshy andouties polyps

Montastraea faveolata Mountainous Star Coral

Largecoloniesand surfacesupportsmall, upwardmoundsand projections

Montastraea franksi Boulder Star Coral

Coloniesusuallydeeper than10m,surfacewith scatteredlumps, consistingofenlargedor protrudingpolyps,often pale

Madracis pharensis Encrusting Star Coral

Encrustingornodular, corallitescompactand slightlypolygonalin outline;zooxanthellaete formcalledluciphylla

Porites asteroides Mustard Hill Coral

Coloniesmassiveor encrusting,surfaceusually lumpyornodular,small corallitesareevenly distributed

Siderastrea radians Lesser Starlet Coral

Encrustingcoloniesand formfreelivingmobile balls,corallitescentres aresunken

Siderastrea siderea Massive Starlet Coral

Largecoloniesgrowas domesorrounded heads;corallites innies orsunken

Solenastrea bournoni Smooth Star Coral

Smallandinconspicuous domes,smoothorwith bumps;coralliteswith darkercentres

Solenastrea hyades Knobby Star Coral

Submassive colonies,with irregularupgrowths; corallitesmaybe irregularlyspaced

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama Stephanacoenia intersepta Blushing Star Coral

Flattenedhemispheres withregularsmooth surfaces;corallitessmall andthewallbetween themrelativelywide

MEANDROID / BRAIN CORALS

Colpophyllia breviserialis Closed-valley BrainCoral
SimilartoColpophyllia natans withshorter andclosedvalleysand evensinglecentres

Colpophyllia natans Boulder Brain coral

Largecolonies,ridges expanddistinctlymidway tothegroove;valleysand wallsarebroadandmay be2cmwide

Diploria clivosa Knobby Brain Coral

Domedorencrusting, withprotrudingknobs, ridgesrisesharplyand arenotgrooved,broad valleys

Diploria labyrinthiformis Grooved Brain Coral

Deep,narrow,polyp bearingvalleysthatare separatedbygrooved ridges(doublevalley), valleysareoften interconnected

Diploria strigosa Symmetrical Brain Coral

Coloniessmoothly domed,ridgesare roundedandnotgrooved, valleysarebroadand long

Manicina areolata Rose Coral

Small(<10cm)free livingcolonies,with broadanddeep valleys

Meandrina meandrites Maze Coral

Valleysradiatefrom originalpointofgrowth dividingatregular intervalswithconstant width;singleseptaatthe topofvalleys

Meandrina brasiliensis Brazilian Rose Coral

Coloniesmostlyfree living,andconsistofone orfewvalleysradiating fromtheoriginalpointof growth;septain2 alternatingorders

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama

FLOWERING / FLESHY
Dichocoenia stockesi Elliptical Star Coral
Ovalelongatedcorallites, almostmeandroid before dividing,wellseparated fromeachotherand surfacebetweenthemis granular

Eusmilia fastigiata Smooth Flower Coral

Clumpsoftubular corallites,eachwith1to3 centres thatareroundto ovalinshape

Favia fragum Golfball Coral

Coloniessmall,rounded andlikeagolfball;large corallitesthatdonot protrude

Phyllangia americana Hidden cup coral

Smallgroupofindividual polyps(11.5cm), azooxanthellate species

Isophyllastrea rigida Rough Star Coral

Smallhemispherical domeswithfleshyridges andirregularclosed, polygonalvalleyeach withoneortwopolyps

Isophyllia sinuosa Sinuous Cactus Coral

Smalldomeswith convolutedveryfleshy ridges,narrow convolutedvalleys

Mycetophyllia aliciae Knobby Cactus Coral

Flatorconvexplateswith ridgesalongtheboarders, centralpartshavenoclear valleysandridges

Mycetophyllia danaena Lowridge Cactus Coral

Valleysandridgesare deepandnarrow,long andmeandering;colonies arethickerandchunky thanothermembersof thegenus

Mycetophyllia ferox Rough Cactus Coral

Welldevelopedvalleys, coveringtheentire surface;thewallsofthe valleysjointoformclosed valleys,arethinand irregular

Mycetophyllia lamarckiana Ridged Cactus Coral

Meandroid withridges alloverthecolony surface;valleysarewide andshallow

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)

AFieldIdentificationGuidetoHardCoralsofBocasdelToroArchipelago,Panama Mussa angulosa Spiny Flower Coral

Large,fleshypolyps,they areseparatedfromthe others;corallite diameter 47cm,septawithlarge prominentteeth

Scolymia cubensis Artichoke Coral

Solitarycorallites,3 10cm,withmussid spinesvisiblethrough thefleshytissue

Scolymia wellsi Solitary Disk Coral

Solitarycorallites,15 cm,smaller,spikier thanS.Cubensis

Scolymia lacera Atlantic Mushroom Coral

Largersizeandmore fleshythanS.cubensis; coralwithlargerpolyps

CLASS HYDROZOA / FIRE CORALS

Millepora alcicornis Branching Fire Coral
Slenderandhighly branchingspecies, commonlyencrustedin seafans orseawhips

Millepora complanata Blade Fire Coral

Upwardprojecting platelikebranches, arisingfroman encrustingbase

Millepora squarrosa Box Fire Coral

Massive,encrustingor lumpyspeciesw/o branches;thickwalled, boxshapedstructures orinclusions

Millepora striata Fire Coral

Delicatelybranching species,formingcolonies ofalmostlacyfronds, triangularorboxshaped crosssectionswithridges

Stylaster roseus Rose Lace Coral

Smallpinkorwhite colonies,resembling smallseafans commonlyhanging downfromoverhangs

ByR.CarballoBolaos,J.Seemann,C.T.Gonzalez(2012)