Elkhorn coral: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the Elkhorn coral lives – recorded in 20 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Acropora palmata
Group	Jellyfish, corals & anemones
Status	Critically endangered (Wikidata, IUCN category label)
Found in	20 countries
Continents	North America, South America
Class	Cnidarian
Order	Scleractinia
Family	Acroporidae

Where does the Elkhorn coral live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the Elkhorn coral in 20 countries and territories across North America and South America.

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

Is the Elkhorn coral endangered?

The Elkhorn coral’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Critically endangered” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.

What kind of animal is the Elkhorn coral?

The Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) is a cnidarian in the order Scleractinia and the family Acroporidae, genus Acropora. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the Elkhorn coral

Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) is an important reef-building coral in the Caribbean. The species has a complex structure with many branches which resemble that of elk antlers; hence, the common name. The branching structure creates habitat and shelter for many other reef species. Elkhorn coral is known to grow quickly with an average growth rate of 5 to 10 cm (2.0 to 3.9 in) per year. They can reproduce both sexually and asexually, though asexual reproduction is much more common and occurs through a process called fragmentation.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Elkhorn coral (revision 1379554997), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q163614 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).