Several weeks ago, we went on an expedition through the Great Barrier Reef, with Ultra Coral Australia. We spent a week on the reef and on multiple occasions came across a fascinating coral called ‘paraclavarina三角形。我们所有人的“珊瑚怪胎”都被这种珊瑚的美丽所迷住了，我们共同同意这是这次旅行的亮点珊瑚之一。
paraclavarina三角形, is a pretty common coral on the Southern Great Barrier Reef with some pink colonies which were absolutely gorgeous, and totally deserved a prime placement for a special coral in our aquarium.
Description:
Paraclavarinawas once believed to be a relative ofHydnophorahorn corals but is now considered a synonym of Merulina. This coral appears very similar to an Hydnophora, and some even classified it as aMerulina。It’s basically a purely branchingMerulina, and the beautiful pink very characteristic of otherMerulinatends to leads toward that direction too. But Veron doesn’t seem to agree with that assessment so we will leave it on its own, as it totally deserve a special place.
这个paraclavarina三角形的特殊性是，顾名思义，分支具有独特的三角形横截面。这在珊瑚世界中非常独特，使其很容易从任何其他物种中识别出来。棕色的模糊殖民地P. triangularis可能会和一些Hydnophora，但沿其树枝没有任何摩托车（水孔）。
Like all the members of the family it possess characteristic valleys which are short and shallow, with thick columellae and septa, which except near branch tips, are fused into one solid structure. Because of the valleys, it could be confused with aMerulinabut the latter has irregular upgrowth, whileparaclavarina三角形具有定期的融合分支，带有三角形截面。
它在浅水中形成厚厚的紧凑型灌木丛。这个灌木丛可以高达米高。
栖息地：
paraclavarina三角形prefer the shallow water of protected lagoons. Where it’s protected from big swell, but still get its fare share of tidal water flow. Water can be quite turbid in these environment, but food is plentiful.
Aquarium maintenance:
该物种从未收集或发货，因此很难知道其维护困难。然而，许多其他家庭成员很容易维护和传播，因此我们怀疑其维护非常容易。中等光线和流量，常规喂养可能是基本组件。
But apart, from its particular shape and maintenance easiness, probably that the most unique character is its beautiful light pink color. Most colonies we found were cream, pale yellow color, but we were lucky enough to find quite a few in light pink color, which is absolutely gorgeous. Everything aboutparaclavarina三角形is unique: its shape is unique, it’s easy to maintain, and it comes in a very nice coloration, the perfect coral aquarium combo!
On future collecting trips we will bring back this coral and try it for you. And hopefully this small post will bring light to an otherwise underrated coral, and it will more frequently find its way to your best coral shops.
PS：额外感谢Russell Kelley的BYO Guides提供一些图像。
