---
title: "Elkhorn Coral"
description: "Acropora palmata — Other animals. Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) is an important reef-building coral in the Caribbean."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/elkhorn-coral
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Elkhorn Coral

> Acropora palmata — Other animals. Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) is an important reef-building coral in the Caribbean.

- Scientific name: *Acropora palmata*
- Category: `other` (Other animals)
- Habitats: `sea` (Sea & coast)
- iNaturalist observations: 2646
- Wikidata: [Q163614](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q163614)
- iNaturalist taxon: [93312](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/93312)

## Names

- en: Elkhorn Coral
- es: Coral cuerno de alce
- fr: Corail corne d'élan

## Countries with the most observations

MX (463), BZ (213), HN (187), KY (182), VI (167), CW (157), PR (105), BL (85), DO (74), BB (69), PA (64), CU (61)

## Summary

Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) is an important reef-building coral in the Caribbean. The species has a complex structure with many branches which resemble that of elk antlers; hence, the common name. The branching structure creates habitat and shelter for many other reef species. Elkhorn coral is known to grow quickly with an average growth rate of 5 to 10 cm (2.0 to 3.9 in) per year. They can reproduce both sexually and asexually, though asexual reproduction is much more common and occurs through a process called fragmentation.
Although Elkhorn coral dominated the Caribbean in the early 1980s, the species has since…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elkhorn_coral

## Photo

![Elkhorn Coral](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/elkhorn-coral/medium.jpg)

Photo: Zoltán Stekkelpak · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/145223152

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/elkhorn-coral?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).