Very few identification guides exist that include a broad range of growth forms of genera and species in the region, as most taxonomic and field work has been done in other parts of the Indo-Pacific. The following guides compile information from visits by David Obura to sites all over the western Indian Ocean, as well as nearby regions (e.g. the Red Sea) to help in the identification of regional corals. These resources will change over time and be updated periodically.

 

Coral genera of the western Indian Ocean - this is a personal document, available as a Powerpoint (7.7MB) or PDF (7.0MB) file.

 

Coral species of the western Indian Ocean - building on the format of the genus guide, this will be built up to include species and their morphological variation between locations and over different reef zones.