A New Species of Montastrea (Cnidaria, Scleractinia) from the Philippines!

A new species of the scleractinian coral genus M ontastrea de Blainville, 1830 was discovered in the Philippines and has been given the name Montastrea multipunctata. This species may have been previously overlooked due to its striking resemblance to a co-occurring zoanthid. Montastrea multipunctata is unusual because in situ, sediment accumulation often partially covers the corallum, especially in the area between the polyps. The features of M. multipunctata coralla are modified by a polychaete worm that resides within them, a relationship found in several other faviid species. Although M. multipunctata shares some characteristics with other Montastrea species, it is clearly differentiated on the basis of growth form, polyp shape, and corallite morphology, especially the pointed septal dentations of the primary septa, which are usually highly exsert over the theca. MATERrAL STUDIED with the Veron, Pichon, and Wijsman-Best (1977) revision on this point. Montastrea valenciennesi was first reported from the Philippines (as Favia) by Faustino (1927) and later described in detail by Nemenzo (1959). The genus Montastrea was first reported from the Philippines by Pichon (1977), who noted both M . curta and M . magnistellata. Complete descriptions of these two species were subsequently provided by Nemenzo and Hodgson (1983). Montastrea annuligera is uncommon in the Indo-Pacific and apparently rare in the Philippines. No specimens have been collected so far; however, P. Alifio of the University of the Philippines reports having seen several colonies near Bolinao, Luzon (personal communication). SYNTYPES: 783, 786, 787, 788; Tambuli Reef, Mactan Island, Cebu, Philippines; 6 m; 1982 (Hodgson). Deposited at the Marine Sciences Center, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines. ADDITIONAL SAMPLES: 776; Tambuli Reef, Mactan Island , Cebu, Philippines; 6 m; 1981 (Hodgson)." 777; same location; 6m; 1981 283 I Manuscript accepted 28 February 1985. 2 University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Zoology, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822. 3This specimen was lost in the mail. AN UNUSUAL NEW SPECIES of Montastrea was discovered in the Philippines. Colonies are commonly found in shallow water growing on carbonate rock and are partially covered with sand and silt. This habit, combined with the living coral's extraordinary resemblance to a co-occurring zoanthid, may explain why it was not collected previously. A description of the living coral and its skeleton follows a brief discussion ofthe state of the genus Montastrea and its occurrence in the Philippines. The most recent revision of Pacific Montastrea grouped over 20 nominal species into 4 species: M . curta, M. annuligera, M. magnistellata, and M. valenciennesi (Veron, Pichon, and Wijsman-Best 1977). This classification has been widely accepted, except for the generic status of the latter species, which some workers would like to retain in the genus Favia. The question of the generic status of this species will not be resolved without further extensive study. Therefore, I will refer to this coral as M . valenciennesi simply as a convenience, without implying agreement