About Acropora monticulosa (Brüggemann, 1879)
Acropora monticulosa forms dome-shaped colonies that can reach over 3 meters (9.8 ft) in diameter. These digitate colonies have thick branches that taper toward their ends, where each branch bears a single axial corallite. Its radial corallites are uniform in both arrangement and size. This species is typically cream or blue in color, and looks similar to Acropora globiceps and Acropora retusa. It is currently classified as a Near Threatened species on the IUCN Red List, with an overall believed to be decreasing population; it is also listed under Appendix II of CITES. No exact population counts for the species are available, but it is considered threatened by multiple factors: global reduction of coral reefs, rising temperatures causing coral bleaching, climate change, human activity, the crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci), and coral disease. Acropora monticulosa is found in the northern and southwestern Indian Ocean, central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, the East China Sea, the oceanic west Pacific Ocean, and the Tuamotus. It inhabits tropical shallow reefs on upper slopes, at depths ranging from 1 to 12 meters (3 ft 3 in to 39 ft 4 in).
