DiscoverSpeciesCorals and anemones
Isis ocracea
Melithaea ochracea
- Usual depth3–33 m
- Water temperature24–29 °C
- Best monthsJuly and November
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) Debra Baker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
Melithaea ochracea is a species of colonial soft coral in the family Melithaeidae, commonly known as knotted fan coral. It grows in tree-like fans on coral reefs in the South China Sea. It grows in tree-like fans on coral reefs in the South China Sea and is used in the jewelry industry under the name red spongy coral.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Melithaea ochracea”, 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: 33 records
- February: 22 records
- March: 22 records
- April: 27 records
- May: 33 records
- June: 23 records
- July: 49 records
- August: 20 records
- September: 21 records
- October: 43 records
- November: 73 records
- December: 40 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 3–33 m · Deepest record: 32.5 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 24–29 °C
Photos
(c) João D'Andretta, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Debra Baker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) klukoff, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Pauline Walsh Jacobson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Paul Asman and Jill Lenoble, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Pauline Walsh Jacobson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Bernard DUPONT, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Isis ocracea, Knotted Fan Coral
Names in 3 more languages
- French
- Gorgone noueuse
- Japanese
- オオイソバナ
- Simplified Chinese
- 橙扇柳珊瑚, 紅扇珊瑚
Other scientific names: Isis ochracea, Isis ocracea, Melitaea ochracea, Melitea ochracea, Melitella ochracea, Melitodes ochracea
Similar species
Bicolor GorgonianMelithaea bicolor
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).
- 145 open-data records from 1758 to 2010.
- Species data updated November 4, 2026.
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