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Ctenella chagius

About

Ctenella chagius is a member of the small Meandrinidae family and is found exclusively in the Chagos Archipelago, Mauritius and La Réunion in the Indian Ocean.

Reefs within the Chagos Archipelago have been subject to recent mass bleaching events with high subsequent mortality and loss of habitat.

The majority of C.chagius’ range lies within the Chagos Marine Reserve and its habitat is therefore protected from anthropogenic impacts such as over fishing and destructive activities.

Ctenella chagius grows in hemi-spherical colonies which may be cream, green or light brown in colour.

  • Order: Scleractinia
  • Family: Meandrinidae
  • Trend: decreasing
  • Depth Range (m): 3 - 45

EDGE Score

EDGE Score: 4.21 (?)
ED Score: 7.42 (?)
GE / IUCN Red List (?)
Not Evaluated Data Deficient Least Concern Near Threatened Vulnerable Endangered Critically Endangered Extinct in the Wild Extinct

Distribution

Ctenella chagius is found exclusively in the Chagos Archipelago, Mauritius and La Réunion in the Indian Ocean.

Habitat and Ecology

This species can be found on reef slopes and in lagoons at depths ranging between 3 and 45m.

Ctenella chagius has also shown an aggressive ability known as extracoelenteric digestion where a coral is able to extend its stomach in digestive filaments onto the living tissue of an adjacent coral and destroy it. This provides Ctenella with an important ecological advantage in a fiercely competitive struggle for light and space in reef ecosystems.

Find out more

This wordcloud illustrates the threats facing this species. The size of each word indicates the extent of a species range that is affected by that threat (larger size means a greater area is affected). The colour of the word indicates how much that threat impacts the species (darker shades of red mean the threat is more severe).

Urban development Industrial development Tourism Extreme temperatures Extreme weather Shipping Fishing Recreation Invasive species Native species Wastewater Industry Agriculture Air pollution

Threat wordcloud key:

Small area affected
a
a
a
a
a
a
a
Large area affected
Least severe
Most severe
Severity unknown
Source: The IUCN List of Threatened Species. Version 2017.1.
Available at: http://www.iucnredlist.org