National Park of American Samoa Other Invertebrates

The park occurs on the largest four islands (Tutuila, Ta'u, Ofu, and Olosega), of seven comprising American Samoa. All are rich in fringing coral reefs. The reefs typically have a shallow lagoon or moat (about 2 m deep), a shallower fore-reef, a reef crest (usually emergent at low tide), surge zone (with spur and groove formation on the south-west windward side) and a sharp reef front dropping 5-10 m to a reef terrace and gradually descending to deep water. The waters are clear and warm with abundant fish and have a great coral diversity. Over 200 coral species occur in the park, representing over half of all coral species found throughout the Indo-Pacific region. Dominant genera are Montipora and Porites , followed by Pavona , Pocillopora , Psammocora and Acropora .