ACROPORIDAE Verrill, 1901

Wallace, Carden C., Turak, Emre & DeVantier, Lyndon, 2011, Novel characters in a conservative coral genus: three new species of Astreopora (Scleractinia: Acroporidae) from West Papua, Journal of Natural History 45 (31 - 32), pp. 1905-1924 : 1909

Family ACROPORIDAE Verrill, 1901

Massive or ramose colonies by extratentacular budding; corallites small, synapticulothecate, pseudo-costate, slightly differentiated from coenosteum. Septa non-exert, in two cycles, formed by simple spiniform trabeculae projecting inward and upward from vertical mural trabeculae, commonly fusing to form laminae. Columella absent or trabecular and weak. Dissepiments thin and tabular when developed. Coenosteum extensive, light reticulate, flaky, generally spinose or striate on surface. Polyps hermaphrodite with internal or external fertilization followed by internal or external larval development respectively.

Occurrence: Upper Cretaceous to Recent.