Montipora mollis

Montipora mollis is a scleractinian coral in the family Acroporidae, forming colonies typically encrusting to laminar in growth form, with a smooth to finely textured surface characteristic of the genus. Like other Montipora species, it is a colonial, sessile organism relying on symbiotic zooxanthellae for the majority of its energy needs, while also capturing plankton through polyp feeding at night. As a reef-building coral, it contributes calcium carbonate structure to reef systems, providing habitat complexity that supports fish and invertebrate communities.

The species occurs across a wide but patchy range in the Indo-Pacific and western Indian Ocean, with records from Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Madagascar, Australia, Pakistan, Thailand, Vanuatu, Yemen, Taiwan, and China. It inhabits marine neritic (shallow coastal) waters, typically on reef flats and slopes within photic depths suitable for its symbiotic algae.

Montipora mollis faces a combination of pressures common to reef-building corals. Fishing and harvesting activities, along with recreational use, cause direct physical damage to colonies. Disease and competition from invasive or problematic native species add biological stress.

Water quality is degraded by domestic and urban wastewater, agricultural runoff, and effluents from non-timber crop production, while broader habitat alteration and unspecified pollution sources compound these effects.

Targeted conservation measures specific to this species are limited, though it benefits indirectly from marine protected areas, water quality regulations, and reef monitoring programs operating across parts of its range. No specific population counts are available, but the population trend is assessed as decreasing.

Given the ongoing, multiple, and unmitigated threats acting simultaneously across its range, the species' outlook remains poor, consistent with its Endangered classification, without evidence of stabilization.