Key Identification Features
- It has distinct deep, interconnected double valleys that contain polyps, and each of these valleys is separated by grooved ambulacral ridges.
- The fused subunits are genetically distinct from one another due to sexual reproduction, but can still fuse together as though they were a single individual.
- The surface of its dome usually has a number of bulges or knobs, but it is not easy to distinguish from the symmetrical brain coral, which typically has a smoother outline.
- Outside the corallites, septa extend as costae that connect adjacent corallites; in this species, these costae are discontinuous, which is another distinguishing feature.
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