Marine Wildlife Encyclopedia
Hump Coral Porites lobata
It can be difficult to tell that hump coral is a living coral colony because it looks just like a large, lumpy rock. Closer inspection will show that the hump coral grows as a series of large lobes formed into a dome. The living polyps are tiny, with tentacles that are only about in (1 mm) long, and during the day, they are hidden in their shallow skeleton cups. At night, they extend their tentacles to feed and the colony takes on a softer appearance. Hump coral is an important reef-building species.
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- Class Anthozoa
- Diameter Up to 20 ft (6 m)
- Depth 0–165 ft (0–50 m)
- Habitat Coral reefs
- Distribution Tropical waters of Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and Indian and Pacific oceans
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