Harald Ebert
Info
We would like to thank gorgonian expert Harald Ebert for his great photo of the colorful king fan Leptogorgia hebes.
Leptogorgia hebes is a very common species in shallow marine zones and can be found together with Titanideum frauenfeldii and Leptogorgia virgulata on hard bottoms or in reef environments.
Colonies reach moderate size and assume a fan-like shape, branching pinnately in a plane.
The species is separately sexual, so male and female corals occur.
The king fan provides a valuable habitat for many species, for example, the amphipod Ericthonius brasiliensis is one of the most frequent visitors to the gorgonian.
The ice snail Cyphoma gibbosum, the barnacle Conopea galeata, the false cowrie (Simnialena uniplacata), and the shrimp Neopontonides beaufortensis are among the most common invertebrates recorded on the gorgonian.
In Aransas Pass, in the state of Texas of the United States, fish were observed preying on the invertebrates on the gorgonian.
Although various publications point to distinct deeper water zones as areas of occurrence for Leptogorgia hebes, the authors of the study "Leptogorgia virgulata (sea whip), L. hebes (regal sea fan), and their associates" clarified that Leptogorgia hebes is clearly a shallow water species.
Predator: Tritonicula wellsi (Er. Marcus, 1961)
Synonyms:
Leptogorgia carolinensis Verrill, 1872
Lophogorgia hebes (Verrill, 1869)
Leptogorgia hebes is a very common species in shallow marine zones and can be found together with Titanideum frauenfeldii and Leptogorgia virgulata on hard bottoms or in reef environments.
Colonies reach moderate size and assume a fan-like shape, branching pinnately in a plane.
The species is separately sexual, so male and female corals occur.
The king fan provides a valuable habitat for many species, for example, the amphipod Ericthonius brasiliensis is one of the most frequent visitors to the gorgonian.
The ice snail Cyphoma gibbosum, the barnacle Conopea galeata, the false cowrie (Simnialena uniplacata), and the shrimp Neopontonides beaufortensis are among the most common invertebrates recorded on the gorgonian.
In Aransas Pass, in the state of Texas of the United States, fish were observed preying on the invertebrates on the gorgonian.
Although various publications point to distinct deeper water zones as areas of occurrence for Leptogorgia hebes, the authors of the study "Leptogorgia virgulata (sea whip), L. hebes (regal sea fan), and their associates" clarified that Leptogorgia hebes is clearly a shallow water species.
Predator: Tritonicula wellsi (Er. Marcus, 1961)
Synonyms:
Leptogorgia carolinensis Verrill, 1872
Lophogorgia hebes (Verrill, 1869)
