Characters: Colonies are submassive or form thick plates and frequently exceed one metre across. They have elongate valleys and walls of relatively uniform height. Most valleys can be traced from the colony centre to the margins.
Colour: Uniform grey, brown or green.
Similar Species: Pectinia maxima. See also P. ayleni.
Habitat: Most reef environments, especially lower reef slopes and turbid water habitats.
Abundance: Common.
Taxonomic Note: A species complex although usually readily recognisable.
Taxonomic References: Veron and Pichon (1980); Veron (2000a); Huang, Benzoni, Fukami et al. (2014);
Identification Guides: Veron (1986a); Nishihira and Veron (1995); Pillay, Terashima, Venkatasami et al. (2002); Turak and DeVantier (2011b);
