Cynarina lacrymalis is a large, solitary coral with a single polyp nestling in a corallite, the stony cup it has secreted.

[7] Cynarina lacrymalis is found in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, the east coast of Africa and the Seychelles.

However, during the night, the tentacles of the polyp are extended to trap planktonic particles floating past and these supplement the nutrition it obtains from photosynthesis.

Cynarina lacrimosa begins sex cell development in late summer, around August, and spawns in April.

[8] The planula larvae which emerge from the eggs are planktonic and eventually settle on the seabed to undergo metamorphosis into juvenile polyps.

Under conditions of poor light, the coral sometimes reproduces asexually, part of the disc becoming detached and growing into a new individual.

In captivity, the species needs moderate light and can be supplementally fed with meaty foods like brine shrimp, krill, or chunks of fish.