DiscoverSpeciesCorals and anemones
Black coral
Antipathella fiordensis
- Usual depth14–34 m
- Water temperature12–18 °C
- Best monthsApril
- How commonRare
About this species
Antipathella fiordensis is a species of colonial coral in the order Antipatharia, the black corals, so named because their calcareous skeletons are black. It was first described as Antipathes fiordensis by the New Zealand zoologist Ken R. Grange in 1990, from material collected in the steep-sided fiords of Fiordland in the southeastern South Island, New Zealand. A 2001 revision of the Antipatheria put this species in the newly created genus Antipathella.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Antipathella fiordensis”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
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Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 3 records
- February: 29 records
- March: 2 records
- April: 163 records
- May: 2 records
- June: 0 records
- July: 26 records
- August: 0 records
- September: 4 records
- October: 2 records
- November: 51 records
- December: 0 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 14–34 m · Deepest record: 514 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 12–18 °C
Names and classification
- English
- Black coral
Other scientific names: Antipathes fiordensis
Similar species
- Black coral
Antipathella aperta
- black coral
Antipathella subpinnata
- Black coral
Cupressopathes abies
Sources and credits
Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).
- Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
- Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
- Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
- 301 open-data records from 1975 to 2025.
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