What is a walking Dendro?

The Walking Dendro (Heteropsammia cochlea) is a truly unique oddball in the coral world. Inside the coral lives a commenal Sipunculid worm which moves it around the sand bed as it forages for food. Rarely seen and amazing to watch, this coral is roughly 3/4″+.

What is a free living coral?

The free-living Heterocyathus and Heteropsammia corals include two species that are commonly called walking corals. These corals are able to move across the sand at lightning speed (for a coral, anyways), covering a few meters of territory in a day.

Are walking Dendros photosynthetic?

Walking Dendro – Heteropsammia cochlea It resembles Whisker Corals (Dendrophyllia sp.) The coral itself grows on one single head like the Cup Corals but is photosynthetic as opposed to the other two corals mentioned. It grows around a hole in its base where a worm species takes up residence.

What is a Dendro coral?

The Dendro Coral is considered one of the most popular corals within the LPS (Large Polyp Stony Coral) category, which also includes Favites Corals and Goniopora Coral. This species of coral is a non-photosynthetic, therefore will need to be fed on a regular basis and require no lighting.

What is Digitate coral?

Digitate corals: this category of corals resembles fingers or large clumps of cigars, that have no other branches. They grow vertically and are generally not as common as most other types of corals. Mushroom corals: as their name would suggest, these resemble the cup of a mushroom.

Why is pillar coral important?

Pillar corals have an important job on the reef; by building large, tall pillars (they look like the smoke stacks of a refinery), they not only form habitat and safe refuge for fish, but they also help to reduce the energy of storm surge as it approaches shore. Pillar coral colony in the Caribbean.

Do corals eat fish poop?

The study confirms that poop from coral-eating fish is an important source of symbiotic dinoflagellate algae for corals. Correa explained that coral-eating predators are typically thought of as biting and weakening reef structures, thereby generating hiding spaces for other organisms and, ultimately, beach sand.

Are zoanthids SPS or LPS?

In taxonomy, the terms “LPS” and “SPS” aren’t even used. Stony corals all fall under the Order Scleractinia. While what we consider soft corals (anemones, zoanthids, corallimorphs) are all under their own different orders.

What does pillar coral eat?

zooplankton
Pillar coral also feed on zooplankton.