''Capnella'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
of
soft coral
Alcyonacea, or soft corals, are an order of corals. In addition to the fleshy soft corals, the order Alcyonacea now contains all species previously known as "gorgonian corals", that produce a more or less hard skeleton, though quite different f ...
s in the family
Nephtheidae
Nephtheidae is a family of soft corals in the phylum Cnidaria. Members of this family are known as carnation corals, tree corals or colt soft corals. They are very attractive and show a wide range of rich and pastel colours including reds, pinks ...
. They are also commonly known as Kenya tree corals.
Species
*''
Capnella arbuscula''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella australiensis''
(Thorpe, 1928)
*''
Capnella bouilloni''
Verseveldt, 1976
*''
Capnella erecta
''Capnella'' is a genus of soft corals in the family Nephtheidae. They are also commonly known as Kenya tree corals.
Species
*'' Capnella arbuscula'' Verseveldt, 1977
*''Capnella australiensis'' (Thorpe, 1928)
*'' Capnella bouilloni'' Verseveld ...
''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella fructosa''
*''
Capnella fungiformis''
Kükenthal, 1903
*''
Capnella gaboensis
''Capnella'' is a genus of soft corals in the family Nephtheidae. They are also commonly known as Kenya tree corals.
Species
*'' Capnella arbuscula'' Verseveldt, 1977
*''Capnella australiensis'' (Thorpe, 1928)
*'' Capnella bouilloni'' Verseveld ...
''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella garetti''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella imbricata''
(Quoy & Gaimard, 1833)
*''
Capnella johnstonei''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella lacertiliensis''
Macfadyen
*''
Capnella parva''
Light, 1913
*''
Capnella portlandensis''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella ramosa''
Light, 1913
*''
Capnella sabangensis''
Roxas, 1933
*''
Capnella shepherdi''
Verseveldt, 1977
*''
Capnella spicata''
(May)
*''
Capnella susanae''
Williams, 1988
*''
Capnella thyrsoidea''
(Verrill, 1989)
*''
Capnella watsonae''
Verseveldt, 1977
Description
Capnella are arborescent, some species are lobed. Generally they are grey with brown polyps. Colour intensity is dependent on light intensity, the higher the intensity of light, the lighter colour of the coral. They form thick trunks with branches that closely resemble trees. In stronger currents they form flatter colonies with shorter branches.
Distribution and habitats
Kenya Tree
coral
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secre ...
s are widespread throughout the
Indo-pacific
The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth.
In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...
region, from the African coast to the
Western Pacific. They are found on coral
reef
A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic processes—deposition (geology), deposition of ...
slopes in clear water from deep to the shallows with strong tidal currents. Sometimes found in shadier places and on coral rubble in shallow water close to the shore.
Biology
They have
symbiotic algae from which they obtain most of their nutrients.
Asexual reproduction has been observed. They form distinctive swellings at bottom of a branch which then drops off by
fission
Fission, a splitting of something into two or more parts, may refer to:
* Fission (biology), the division of a single entity into two or more parts and the regeneration of those parts into separate entities resembling the original
* Nuclear fissio ...
at the swelling. The branch then secures to a new hold and forms a new colony. They can stick very quickly and will be firmly rooted within a day. Colonies can bend and reattach to the rock or by “creeping” and division at the base.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1453388
Nephtheidae
Octocorallia genera
Taxa named by John Edward Gray