Dead man's fingers is a colonial coral forming clumps of yellow, white or cream-coloured fleshy masses of finger-like lobes.

[2] The individual polyps are white and translucent, and project from the leathery surface when feeding, giving the colony a furry appearance.

[4] The species also occurs in parts of Canada, northeastern coast of the United States, the Gulf of Maine and the Bay of Fundy and the northern waters of New Zealand.

[5] The polyps live in colonies attached to bedrock, boulders, stones and occasionally the shells of crabs and gastropods.

[6] Fertilisation takes place externally and the embryos float for a few days before developing into free swimming larvae.