Coenothecalia

Coenothecalia
Blue coral (Heliopora coerulea)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Cnidaria
Class:	Anthozoa
Subclass:	Octocorallia
Order:	Coenothecalia Bourne, 1895[1]
Families
Helioporidae Lithotelestidae
Synonyms
Helioporacea Bock, 1938[1] Helioporoidea Bock, 1938[1] Helioporaria Stiasny, 1939[1]

Coenothecalia (also known as Helioporacea) is an order of the class Alcyonaria that forms massive lobed crystalline calcareous skeletons in colonial corals. These corals first appeared in the Cretaceous period and includes the modern genus, Heliopora coerulea,^[2] also known as Blue coral.

Heliopora coerulea, or Blue coral, (the only species in the family Helioporidae) is most common in shallow water of the tropical Pacific^[3] or Indo-Pacific reefs.^[4] Coenothecalia (Helioporidae) have no spicules, and is the only Octocoral known to produce a massive skeleton formed of fibrocrystalline aragonite fused into lamellae, similar to that of scleractinia. They form in large colonies more than 1 meter in diameter, that may be massive, or most commonly, composed of vertical branches or folia.

The surface appearances of Blue coral is very smooth, and the color in life is a distinctive grey-brown with white tips. The entire skeleton, however, has an unusual blue color and therefore the species is commonly exploited for decorative uses.^[5] The blue color of the skeleton (which is covered with a layer of brown polyps) is caused by iron salts. Blue coral can be used in tropical aquariums, and the crystalline calcareous fibres in the skeletons can be used for jewelry.

Individual polyps have eight feathery tentacles and, in the gastrovascular cavity, eight septa, or partitions. Cilia (tiny hairlike projections) on six septa draw water into the cavity. Cilia on the other two septa expel water. The skeleton consists of spicules that form a protective cup around each polyp.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Bayer, F. M. (1979). The correct name of the helioporan coral Lithotelesto micropora Bayer & Muzik. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 92: 873–875. The full text
2. ^ http://www.answers.com/topic/coenothecalia
3. ^ http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-Coenothecalia.html
4. ^ http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coenothecalia
5. ^ http://www.scribd.com/doc/50241730/14/Order-COENOTHECALIA
6. ^ http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70178/blue-coral

This cnidarian-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Cnidarian stubs Octocorallia Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР Pantophaea favillacea Coenotoca Look at other dictionaries: coenothecalia — coe·no·the·ca·lia …   English syllables coenothecalia — ˌsēnəthə̇ˈkālēə, en nō noun plural Usage: capitalized Etymology: New Latin, from coen + thec + alia : an order of massive calcareous corals including solely the blue corals of the Indo Pacific …   Useful english dictionary Anthozoa — Taxobox name = Anthozoa | image width = 250px image caption = Stony corals, Scleractinia regnum = Animalia phylum = Cnidaria classis = Anthozoa classis authority = Ehrenberg, 1831Anthozoa is a class within the phylum Cnidaria that contains the… …   Wikipedia cnidarian — /nuy dair ee euhn/, n. 1. any invertebrate animal, as a hydra, jellyfish, sea anemone, or coral, considered as belonging to the phylum Cnidaria, characterized by the specialized stinging structures in the tentacles surrounding the mouth; a… …   Universalium coral — corallike, adj. /kawr euhl, kor /, n. 1. the hard, variously colored, calcareous skeleton secreted by certain marine polyps. 2. such skeletons collectively, forming reefs, islands, etc. 3. the solitary or colonial polyp that secretes this… …   Universalium Coral — /kawr euhl, kor /, n. a female given name. * * * I Any of about 2,300 species of marine cnidarians in the class Anthozoa that are characterized by stonelike, horny, or leathery skeletons (external or internal). The skeletons of these animals are… …   Universalium Helioporacea — Голубой коралл (Heliopora coerulea) …   Википедия κοινοθηκωτά — τα ζωολ. τάξη αλκυονιοειδών κνιδοζώων με ασβεστολιθικό σκελετό. [ΕΤΥΜΟΛ. Αντιδάνεια λ., πρβλ. αγγλ. coenothecalia < coeno (πρβλ. κοινός) + thec (πρβλ. θήκη) + alia (πρβλ. ἁλία «συνάθροιση» < ἁλής*)] …   Dictionary of Greek blue coral — noun : a massive coral (Heliopora coerulea) with a lamellated calcareous skeleton colored blue by iron salts that is widely distributed in the Indian and southwest Pacific oceans and is the sole recent form of a once abundant order… …   Useful english dictionary helioporidae — ˌhēlēəˈpȯrəˌdē noun plural Usage: capitalized Etymology: New Latin, from Heliopora, type genus (from heli (I) + pora) + idae : a family of tabulate corals (order Coenothecalia) comprising the blue coral and extinct related forms and having the… …   Useful english dictionary 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”