Pectinia lactuca (Pallas, 1766)
Lettuce coral
Pectinia lactuca
photo by FAO

Family:  Pectiniidae ()
Max. size:  100 cm WD (male/unsexed)
Environment:  reef-associated; marine; depth range 1 - 15 m
Distribution:  Indo-Pacific.
Diagnosis:  Colonies form large plates covered with thin, high collines that form radiating valleys. The plates may be more than 1 m in diameter while the colonies may reach several centimeters in height. Corallites are widely spaced with septocostae continuous between them (Ref. 269). Zooxanthelate (Ref. 19).
Biology:  Maximum depth from Ref. 98471. Common from below the reef flat to the limit of coral growth (Ref. 269). Also in lower reef slopes and turbid water (Ref. 98471). Has high bleaching level and high estimated mortality in Palau (Ref. 66144).
IUCN Red List Status: Vulnerable (VU); Date assessed: 01 January 2008 (A4cd) Ref. 123251)
Threat to humans: 
Country info:   
 

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