Soft corals (or gorgonians) can be distinguished from hard corals by their more flexible (less stony) structure and their eight-tentacled polyps. Since soft corals do not produce a calcium carbonate skeleton like hard corals, they are not considered “reef-building.” That being said, they add critical complexity and three-dimensional structure to reefs and create habitat for many species of fish and invertebrates. This diagram shows the diversity of forms that soft corals exhibit. Clockwise from upper left: pinnate, candelabra, whip, digitate, reticulate, branched, and encrusting. Bonus creature: the pink flamingo tongue (Cyphoma gibbosum) is a predatory snail that feeds on the polyps of sea fans.

Illustration created for publication in The Ocean’s Menagerie (2025) by Drew Harvell.

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