 The first description of "Colpophyllia natans" as a species was published by the Dutch physician and naturalist Maarten Houttuyn.Basing his work on Linnaeus, between the years 1761 and 1785 Houttuyn published a 37-volume natural history series, titled "" ("Natural history, or an extensive description of the animals, plants and minerals, after the compilation of Linnaeus, with accurate illustrations").Volumes 17 and 18, the final volumes of the zoology section, were published in 1772 and focused on polyps, wherein "C. natans" is described.