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Family
Poritidae
Lobe
& Finger Corals
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Massive or branching species easily recognized by their
small hexagonal calices. Many are difficult to identify in the field since
ID's are based upon minute skeletal structures. Lobe and Finger coral are
dominant reef-forming species in Hawaii while the others are occasional in clear
waters.
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HAWAII
Porites
brighami 
Hanauma Bay, Oahu, 15 feet
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Puako, Hawaii, 15 feet
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cropped
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Firehouse, Oahu, 10 feet
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cropped
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Firehouse, Oahu, 10 feet
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Hanauma Bay, Oahu, 15 feet |
Makapu'u tidepool, Oahu
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Ahihi Bay, Maui, 6 feet
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Kapoho tidepool, Hawaii |
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BRIGHAM'S CORAL
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Fairly common as small knobby
encrustations in shallow water exposed to surge. The large calices are
very deep with solid walls. Color is usually grayish brown with blue or
purple tones. Endemic to Hawaii.
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Porites solida
Koloa Landing, Kaua'i, 30 feet
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cropped
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Kewalo, Oahu, 55 feet
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cropped
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cropped
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Kewalo Hump, Oahu, 90 feet |
Kewalo Pipe, Oahu, 55 feet |
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SOLID CORAL
| Rare in shallow water. Yellow in color and smoother colony form
than Lobe coral. Calices are deep with solid walls. Hawaii
& the Indo-Pacific. |
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| Porites solida
& P. lobata |
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Porites
lobata
Hanauma Bay, Oahu, 40 feet
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Mahukona, Hawaii, 30 feet |
Puako, Hawaii, 25 feet
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Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, 30 feet |
Kewalo, Oahu, 25 feet
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cropped |
Kewalo, Oahu, 25 feet
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Parrotfish bites, Sharks Cove, Oahu, 20 feet
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UV stress, Kapoho, Hawaii, 5 feet
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Midway Lagoon |
Distressed colony, Kewalo Pipe, Oahu |
Midway Lagoon
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Honaunau, Hawaii, 20 feet
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Honokohau, Hawaii, 20 feet |
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Honaunau, Hawaii, 20 feet
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Puako, Hawaii, 25 feet
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Kewalo, Oahu, 50 feet |
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Ahihi Bay, Maui, 10 feet |
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LOBE CORAL
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An abundant and variable
species. Typically bright green but occasionally tan with blue or purple
cast. The colony surface is usually composed of rounded to conical lobes
with a tendency to form multiple peaks. Small calices are deep and the walls
sharp and well-defined. Hawaii, Indo-Pacific, and Tropical Eastern
Pacific.
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Puako, Hawaii, 35 feet |
Mokolea Islet, Oahu, 30 feet |
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Porites lobata & P.
evermanni
Porites
evermanni
Kaiwi Point, Hawaii, 50 feet
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Mahukona, Hawaii, 40 feet |
Hanauma Bay, Oahu, 50 feet
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Kewalo Pipe, Oahu, 50 feet |
Kewalo, Oahu, 35 feet
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cropped
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Puako, Hawaii, 35 feet
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Hanauma Bay, Oahu, 35 feet |
Honaunau, Hawaii, 30 feet
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Kaiona, Waimanalo, Oahu
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Silt & fishing line, Makai Pier, Waimanalo, Oahu |
Mostly dead, Makai Pier, Waimanalo, Oahu
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Haleiwa Trench, Oahu, 15 feet |
Haleiwa Trench, Oahu, 15 feet |
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BROWN LOBE CORAL
| Fairly common in shallow
water. Forms large bommies that are brown to purplish gray in color.
The colony surface is composed of inflated, often squared-off lobes.
Calices are very shallow and the walls are not sharp. Endemic to Hawaii,
similar colonies in the Tropical Eastern Pacific may also be this
species. Replaced by Porites lutea throughout the
Indo-Pacific. |
Porites
lichen
LICHEN CORAL
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Rare in Hawaii except for a few
scattered locations such as Haleiwa Trench on Oahu and Kure Atoll, where it is
abundant. Very similar to Lobe Coral except it forms thin plates.
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Porites
compressa
Kapoho, Hawaii, 5 feet
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Puako, Hawaii, 40 feet |
Kure Atoll, 8 feet
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He'eia, Oahu, 4 feet |
Moku O Loe, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 3 feet
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Puako, Hawaii, 40 feet
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Moku O Loe, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 3 feet |
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Moku O Loe, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 6 feet
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Moku O Loe, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 3 feet |
Moku O Loe, Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 5 feet
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Haleiwa Trench, Oahu, 20 feet
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Haleiwa Trench, Oahu, 20 feet
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Honaunau, Hawaii, 40 feet
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Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, 10 feet
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Kewalo, Oahu, 60 feet
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Haleiwa Trench, Oahu, 20 feet
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FINGER CORAL
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One of three dominant corals in
Hawaii. Prefers quiet shallow bays as well as deeper water with little
surge. The open water form is light gray and finger-like, creating
extensive thickets. The lagoon form in Kaneohe Bay is yellowish
green with short fused branches creating hemispherical mounds. Calices are
shallow and the outer wall is not sharp and elevated. Endemic to
Hawaii. Replaced by P. cylindrica in the Indo-Pacific.
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Porites
duerdeni
KNOBBY FINGER CORAL
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Rare along the Kona coast of
Hawaii. Short green fingers with blunt and slightly inflated ends form
large hemispherical colonies at shallow scuba depths. Calices are
quite deep and the outer wall is sharp and elevated. Endemic to Hawaii.
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Porites
hawaiiensis
Laysan Island, 15 feet
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cropped
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Laysan Island, 15 feet
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Makapu'u tidepool, Oahu |
Sharks Cove, Oahu, 25 feet |
cropped
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HAWAIIAN PORITES
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A rare encrusting species found in
small crevices on vertical walls exposed to surge. The calices are very small and the
colony only reaches a few inches in diameter, the area between calices covered
with tiny spines. Endemic to Hawaii. Formerly known as Porites
cf. bernardi.
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Porites monticulosa
PLATE CORAL
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Occasional along the leeward coasts
of Hawaii and Maui at scuba depths. Forms solid plates that often become
large tiered colonies several meters tall. Tiny white circular polyps are
surrounded by short, raised, irregular ridges. Grayish brown in color but
may appear pale blue gray without a flashlight.
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Porites rus
Haleiwa Beach, Oahu, 30 feet
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cropped
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KNOBBY CORAL
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Rare at various locations.
Forms large encrustations with irregular vertical projections. Tiny circular polyps are surrounded by short, raised, irregular ridges.
Greenish or pinkish brown in color.
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INDO-PACIFIC
Porites
cylindrica
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Faga'alu, Tutuila, American Samoa, 6 feet
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Common lagoon species throughout the
Indo-Pacific. Replaced in Hawaii by P. compressa.
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Porites
nigrescens
Wakatobi, Indonesia
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Locally common in lagoons & deeper water. Indo-Pacific.
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