Lesser star coral

Goniastrea retiformis

Corals and anemones
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth3–47 m
Water temperature-0–30 °C
Best monthsApril
How commonOccasional

About this species

Goniastrea retiformis is a species of stony corals in the family Merulinidae. It is native to shallow water in the Indo-Pacific region.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Goniastrea retiformis”, 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: 27 records
February: 45 records
March: 63 records
April: 753 records
May: 411 records
June: 3 records
July: 12 records
August: 69 records
September: 10 records
October: 11 records
November: 2 records
December: 1 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 3–47 m · Deepest record: 253 m

0–10 m: 386 records
10–20 m: 19 records
20–30 m: 67 records
30–40 m: 287 records
40–50 m: 611 records
50–60 m: 15 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 0 records
110+ m: 16 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of -0–30 °C

-2–0 °C: 1 records
0–2 °C: 0 records
2–4 °C: 0 records
4–6 °C: 0 records
6–8 °C: 0 records
8–10 °C: 0 records
10–12 °C: 0 records
12–14 °C: 0 records
14–16 °C: 0 records
16–18 °C: 0 records
18–20 °C: 0 records
20–22 °C: 0 records
22–24 °C: 1 records
24–26 °C: 44 records
26–28 °C: 110 records
28–30 °C: 505 records

Names and classification

English: Lesser star coral, lesser star coral

Names in 3 more languages

Japanese: コモンキクメイシ
Thai: ปะการังรังผึ้งเล็ก, ปะการังสมองผิวเรียบ
Simplified Chinese: 網狀角星珊瑚

Other scientific names: Astraea (Fissicella) eximia, Astraea eximia, Astraea retiformis, Astraea spongia, Astrea eximia, Astrea retiformis, Astrea spongia, Goniastraea retiformis, Goniastrea bournoni, Goniastrea bournonii, Goniastrea eximia

Similar species

Lesser star coral
Goniastrea pectinata
knob coral
Goniastrea stelligera
Lesser star coral
Goniastrea edwardsi
Lesser star coral
Goniastrea favulus
Lesser star coral
Goniastrea minuta
Lesser star coral
Goniastrea thecata

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).
1,664 open-data records from 1816 to 2012.
Species data updated November 3, 2026.

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