Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis)

FMM2011.20.128.1.JPG

Title

Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis)
FMM2011.20.128

Subject

coral, marine life

Description

Off-white/gray coral that branches like a stag's horns.

Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) is a type of branching coral found in shallow water reefs around Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. Staghorn colonies can grow 4 feet high and 6 feet in diameter, with multiple colonies together creating dense fields of thicket. The staghorn coral is critically endangered after suffering 97% population loss from white band disease in the 1980s. Today, it continues to face threats of disease as well as the ill effects of warming ocean waters and pollution.

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