Pocillopora damicornis
species of cnidarian
Pocillopora damicornis, commonly known as the cauliflower coral or lace coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Description
P. damicornis is a colonial coral and can grow into clumps up to 30 cm (12 in) high. It is distinguishable from other members of the genus by the verrucae (wart-like growths) on its surface being more irregularly arranged. It is more branched than the otherwise similar P. verrucosa. Its form varies according to its habitat and is more open and branched in calm positions and more compact on the upper parts of reefs where water movement is greater. Its colour varies and may be greenish, pink, yellowish-brown or pale brown.
Distribution and habitat
Cauliflower coral is native to the tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Its wide range extends from East Africa and the Red Sea to Japan, Indonesia, Australia, Hawaii, Easter Island, and the western coast of Central America. It is found at depths to about 40 m (131 ft), but is most common between 5 and 20 m (16 and 66 ft), often forming dense patches.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Pocillopora damicornis” as species of cnidarian. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as species of cnidarian. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 8, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3942169. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Pocillopora damicornis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.