Merulinidae is a family of reef-building stony corals.
Characteristics
All the genera in this family are colonial, reef-building corals. Skeletal structures are similar to those of Faviidae but are highly fused, without paliform lobes. The valleys are superficial or may be indistinct because of fan-like spreading or contortions in the ridges. Faviidae and Trachyphylliidae are the most closely related families.
Genera
The World Register of Marine Species includes these genera in the family:
- Astrea<small> Lamarck, 1801</small>
- Australogyra<small> Veron & Pichon, 1982</small>
- Boninastrea<small> Yabe & Sugiyama, 1935</small>
- Caulastraea<small> Dana, 1846</small>
- Coelastrea<small> Verrill, 1866</small>
- Cyphastrea<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1848</small>
- Dipsastraea<small> Blainville, 1830</small>
- Echinopora<small> Lamarck, 1816</small>
- Erythrastrea<small> Pichon, Scheer & Pillai, 1983</small>
- Favites<small> Link, 1807</small>
- Goniastrea<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1848</small>
- Hydnophora<small> Fischer von Waldheim, 1807</small>
- Hydnophyllia â <small>Reis, 1889</small>
- Isastraeaâ <small>Milne Edwards & Haime, 1851</small>
- Leptoria<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1848</small>
- Merulina<small> Ehrenberg, 1834</small>
- Mycedium<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1851</small>
- Orbicella<small> Dana, 1846</small>
- Oulophyllia<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1848</small>
- Paragoniastrea<small> Huang, Benzoni & Budd, 2014</small>
- Paraleptoriaâ <small>Budd & Bosellini, 2016</small>
- Paramontastraea<small> Huang & Budd, 2014</small>
- Pectinia<small> Blainville, 1825</small>
- Physophyllia<small> Duncan, 1884</small>
- Platygyra<small> Ehrenberg, 1834</small>
- Scapophyllia<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1848</small>
- Trachyphyllia<small> Milne Edwards & Haime, 1849</small>
References