Question

The generic name of brain-coral is
A. Fungia
B. Meandrina
C. Madrepora
D. Astraea

Answer 1

Hint: The brain-coral, as the name indicates, has an appearance like that of a human brain. Thus, it consists of large dome-shaped colonies that possess on the surface a meandering network of valleys and ridges. The ridges are usually brown while the valleys may be tan, green, or white.

Complete answer:
-Option (A) is incorrect. Fungia belongs to the family Fungiidae under the phylum Cnidaria. This genus consists of only single species (monotypic) i.e., Fungia fungites, whose common name is ‘common mushroom coral’.
-Option (B) is correct. Meandrina is the generic name of the brain coral. More specifically its species i.e., Meandrina gyrosa is also known as boulder brain coral. The synonym for M. gyrosa is Colpophyllia natans that belongs to the family Mussidae under the phylum Cnidaria.
-Option (C) is incorrect. Madrepora is a genus of stony corals. Its species i.e Madrepora oculata is also known as zigzag coral belonging to the family Curculionidae under the phylum Cnidaria.
-Option (D) is incorrect. Astraea is commonly called star shells because Astraea is a Latin word which means star. It belongs to the family Turbinidae under the phylum Mollusca. This is a genus of medium to large sea snails.
Hence, the correct option is (B).

Note: Meandrina gyrosa is a generic name for boulder brain coral. It belongs to the family Mussidae that consists of species that are characterized generally by the spheroid form and grooved surfaces resembling the convolutions of the brains. Hence, the species belonging to this family are referred to as brain corals. The members of this family are either solitary or colonial that form reefs.