User:IkaikaRSM/Montipora patula

Comments by A. Faucci (Apr 3, 2024):

Nice work on finding lots of great information. To polish your draft before copying it over to the main article please work on the following:


 * Make sure you only include content that is important to your species. Anything about the genus or the family should go on that respective Wikipedia page and not here. For example, you have great info on the life cycle but that is info on coals in general (re your source) so, I would leave that part out.
 * Lead: I would change the part on endemism but otherwise leave as is.
 * Description: Start general on how the colony looks, including size, then go into details. So delete the first 2 sentences and combine the first 2 paragraphs. great detailed info on corallites and papillae. I would combine some of the papillae sentences for readability.
 * Distribution & Habitat: Make sure you don't contradict yourself. A species cannot be endemic to Hawaii (only occurring in Hawaii becasue it evolved here) while also occur in the rest of the Indo-Pacific. Also, not sure where you found the info that they might occur in the Antarctic. your reference says the distribution only goes to 20 deg south, which is still tropical. I know one of your sources says it is endemic. but all the others don't. I would go with the most reputable one, which is Corals of the World (ref 4) and you can add references that agree with that. So, I would include 2-3 sentences for this section: Montipora patula is found in the tropical Central Pacific (including Hawaii, etc.). Colonies can usually be found along shallow reef flats.
 * You can add a sentence that the species is vulnerable from a conservation point of view. I've seen it on at least 2 of your sources.
 * Find one more source to get to the required 5. one of your current sources is already part of the main article. You could use the info from the coral book i had brought to class or https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=207149#sources

Lead
Montipora patula, also called the sandpaper rice coral, is a coral species in the family Acroporidae endemic to Hawaii.

Description
Montipora patula start off as zygotes that develop into a planktonic planula larva. Metamorphosis begins with tentacles, septa, and pharynx before larval settlement. In their growth form, Montipora patula are small, encrusting, and brown with light borders.

Montipora patula form colonies that are encrusting or tiered plates. These plates can sometimes reach a length of over 2 meters across. These plates have free edges. Corallites have an irregular height and are generally small. Papillae are found around the corallites. Papillae are usually tan in color. They are also quite small. Polyps are found on these species and are usually purple in color. Rings are formed around the calyx of Montipora patula.

Montipora patula is indistinguishable from Montipora verrilli in the Hawaiian Islands. However, these two species are distinct elsewhere.

Distribution & Habitat
Montipora patula is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Montipora patula are commonly found within the Pacific Ocean. They may also be found in the Atlantic Ocean. Montipora patula live mainly along the Western and Central Pacific regions They may also be found in the Indian Ocean, the Western Atlantic, the Eastern Pacific and Atlantic, and the Subantarctic and Antarctic regions. These species live along reef flats. They prefer shallow reef environments.