Department of Zoology at ANDC/Zoology Museum/Museum specimens/Cnidaria/Millepora

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{|cellpadding="5" cellspacing="6" style="width:100%;background:#FFFFFF; border-style:solid; border-width:3px; border-color:#0066FF;" Date & Time : 28, August 2024      
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=Classification=

Phylum - Cnidaria

Class - Hydrozoa

Order - Milleporina

Genus - Millepora

=Common Name=

Stinging coral =Geographical Distribution=

These are found in tropical seas of West Indies and U.S.A., often associated with coral reefs. =Habitat=

Colonial marine coral found in shallow water. =Identifying Features=
 * Colony consists of branching calcareous growths up to 30-60 cm in height and is white or yellowish in colour.


 * Epidermis secretes a calcareous perisarc which forms a braod base through which it is attached to the rocks.


 * The body surface contains innumerable pores which are of two types:
 * 1) large gastropores; separated by each other by a distance of 1-2 mm
 * 2) small dactylopores, distributed irregularly


 * Colony have 2 kinds of zooids - gastrozooids and dactylozooids.
 * Gastrozooids are nutritive zooids which protrude through gastropores. These are shorter and have a mouth surrounded by 4-6 tentacles.


 * Dactylozooids or protective zooids arise from dactylopores. These are longer, slender and are devoid of mouth. They are provided with short tentacles beset with batteries of namatocysts.
 * Medusae or gonophores are minute which do not have mouth and tentacles. They bud off directly from the coenosarc and are present in calcareous rounded chambers called ampullae.