Biodiversity & Conservation

Devonshire cup coral - Caryophyllia smithii

Caryophyllia smithii

Image Keith Hiscock - Devonshire cup coral, Caryophyllia smithii at Strome Narrows, Loch Carron, Scotland.
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Distribution map

Caryophyllia smithii recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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  • CITES
Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Cnidaria Sea anemones, corals, sea firs & jellyfish
Class Hexacorallia
Authority Stokes & Broderip, 1828
Recent synonyms Caryophyllia claves, Paracyathus taxilianus, Paracyathus thulensis, Paracyathus pteropus.
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland Found from Shetland, north eastern England, the south west, Wales, Ireland and north western Scotland.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Sublittoral on rocks or shell and artificial structures to a depth of at least 200 m. Can sometimes be found on the shore in shaded places and deep pools.
Text page icon Description A solitary hard coral, up to 2.5 cm in diameter, very rarely occurring in clusters of two to four. The polyp has less than 80 translucent tentacles with small but distinct terminal knobs. The calcified cup-shaped skeleton (corallum) has smooth-edged projecting septa and is usually broader than high. Colour is very variable ranging from white, pink, orange, red to green. The disc usually has a contrasting zigzag ring pattern around the mouth.
Identifying features
  • Stony solitary coral with a calcareous exoskeleton.
  • Up to 2.5 cm in diameter and height with less than 80 slender tapered translucent tentacles and each with a prominent spherical swelling at the terminal end.
  • Calcified cup-shaped corallum has a smooth-edged projecting septa.
Additional information icon Additional information Manuel (1988) states that the Devonshire cup coral has two forms; a shallow water form (Caryophyllia smithii var. smithii) that can be found in waters up to 100 m deep and a deep water form (Caryophyllia smithii var. clavus) that is found in water >50-1000 m deep. The shape of the corallum is distinctly different between the two forms, the deep water form being smaller with a narrow base, but the two forms are otherwise similar in general structure (Manuel, 1988).

Caryophyllia inornata is very similar and co-occurs in some locations. Young specimens of Caryophyllia smithii are usually six-rayed and may be virtually indistinguishable from Caryophyllia inornata (Manuel, 1983).

This review can be cited as follows:

Paul Gregory 2008. Caryophyllia smithii. Devonshire cup coral. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 22/05/2012]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=2899>