coral care pg 2

Clove Coral

Class Anthozoa, Order Alcyonacea, Family Clavulariidae, Genera Cornularia and Clavularia

Common names: clove polyp coral, clove coral, eight tentacle polyps Natural origin: Indo-Pacific Sensitivity (Level 1): These are usually very tolerant and forgiving corals. Feeding: The coral's feathery polyp tentacles help it catch food suspended in water. They feed on foods of smaller particle size. Lighting (Level 4 to 7): Lighting needs will depend on the depth and clarity of the water where the coral was collected (or aquacultured). However, most prefer moderate lighting. Water flow: Moderate water flow is important for good health. Placement: These corals can be slightly aggressive, but the stinging power of their polyps is minimal. When healthy, they can grow quite quickly and should be provided space to grow and fully extend their polyps. An encrusting coral with tubular shaped polyps, clove corals can grow quite fast and compete with other corals for space (like xenia and star polyps they can become a "weed coral"). Polyps usually range in height from 1/2 to 2 inches when closed, and 1 to 4 inches when fully extended. General: These are great beginner corals and very easy to fragment and propagate.

2007 © A S I R A

for information on general coral husbandry, sources and references, please see

www.A S I R A.org

Sensitivity:

Level 1 - These corals are easy to care for, good for the novice aquarists.

Level 2 - These corals require slightly more attention than level 1 corals, but are generally tolerant and forgiving.

Level 3 - These corals require stable, established aquariums and care by an experienced aquarist.

Level 4 - These corals should only be kept by the most experienced aquarists.

Level 5 - These corals are not known to be able to survive in aquariums even when under the care of the most experienced aquarists Note that this scale is not set in stone, but based on the numerous experiences and reports of professional and hobby aquarists. The sensitivity and tolerance of any given coral in your tank will depend on species, health when collected/purchased, how long it's been in captivity, and other factors that may or may not be knowable.

Lighting Scale (approximations):

Level 0 - no light ...

Level 3 - one foot below modest VHO or T5 fluorescent lighting ...

Level 5 - two feet below extensive VHO or T5 fluorescent lighting ...

Level 6 - one foot below extensive VHO or T5 fluorescent lighting

Level 7 - two feet below 250 watt single ended MH light (or 150-175 watt MH with HQI ballast)

Level 8 - one foot below 250 watt single ended MH light (or 150-175 watt MH with HQI ballast) ...

Level 10 - one foot below 400 watt single ended MH (or 250 watt MH with HQI ballast)

Note that this scale is quite crude and only meant to provide a rough idea of the different levels of light intensities. How much (and what kind of) light actually reaches the corals in your tank also depends on the type of reflector in the light fixture, the temperature of the bulbs/lamps, the clarity of your tank water, etc.

It's also important to note that different individual corals, even of the same species, can have very different lighting requirements and ideals. Often times, the same types and species of wild caught corals come from different depths and different water clarities. It's nearly impossible to know what kind or how much light was getting to your coral when it was first taken from the wild. One advantage of aquacultured corals is that you can know what light they were grown under. Beyond health, the color of any given zooxanthellate (photosynthetic) coral will change and adapt in response to the lighting it is placed under. All corals are vulnerable to bleaching if not allowed to acclimate to a change to more intense lighting. If your coral begins to bleach, move it to an area of lower lighting and feed it especially well.

Acclimation:

Please, always take the time to acclimate new corals.

Step 1: Float the bag with the coral in the aquarium water (away from lights!) for about 20 minutes.

Step 2: Open the bag and test the salinity of the bag water.

Step 3: Add about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of tank water to the bag every 10-20 minutes until the bag water and tank water are approximately the same salinity. You can add less water over longer periods of time to acclimate more slowly for more sensitive animals (or when the bag water and tank water have substantially different salinity). Acclimation can also be done in a bucket (rather than the transport bag). However, the bucket water temperature can get closer to room temperature than tank water temperature (especially for slow acclimations). Insulating the bucket in a Styrofoam box or cooler during acclimation should help. To acclimate to new lighting conditions, first place the coral in a less light intense area of the tank. Every few days, move the coral towards more direct lighting until it is where you want it to be. If it begins to bleach at any point, move it back to a less light intense area. After the coral recovers, commence moving towards more direct light more slowly.

General "Disclaimer" These care sheets are a brief presentation of the needs and characteristics of a variety of commonly kept aquarium corals. Though there's a lot of science in reef keeping, the hobby itself has always been and continues to be an imperfect science.

Corallimorphia (Ricordia and mushrooms)

Class Anthozoa, Suborder Hexacorallia, Order Corallimorpharia, Family Ricordeidae and Genus Discosoma

Common names: Ricordia, mushrooms, button polyps, hairy mushrooms Natural origin: Indo-Pacific, Caribbean Sensitivity (Level 1 to 2): Sensitivity varies some from species to species, but usually tolerant and quite forgiving. When healthy, these corals can rapidly recover from damage and stress. Feeding: Prey capture ability depends on species and size of the coral polyp mouth. If the tank is regularly fed a healthy variety of food, these corals should have no problem getting what they need. Lighting (Level 2 to 8): Most can adapt to a wide range of light intensities but sudden changes in lighting can cause bleaching. Water flow: These corals can thrive in lower flow areas of the tank. Placement: Though they're not generally aggressive, they can be quite unyielding. A few species can grow quite large (reaching over a foot in diameter) while some species stay relatively small (less than 2 inches across). The larger species include many of the corals commonly referred to as "hairy mushrooms." All species divide as a method of asexual reproduction. General: Note that these corals will sometimes detach from their rocks and float away. This could be a sign that they are unhealthy or over crowded. However, it could also mean that they are not happy with where they are in the tank and are simply trying to find a more favorable spot. You can try to glue the coral down, but this can be quite difficult if there are grains of sand attached to the foot. It's usually wiser or kinder to just let the coral find the spot it wants. Just make sure that as it ventures around it doesn't get stuck in an obviously bad place (such as in the grate of an overflow or powerhead, or at the base of an incompatible coral). These corals can be fragmented by cutting into sec

Euphyllia (Hammer, Torch and Fox Corals)

Class Anthozoa, Order Scleractinia, Family Euphyllidae, Genera Euphyllia and Nemenzophyllia

Common names: hammer coral, branched hammer coral, torch coral, pom-pom coral, whisper coral, fox coral Natural origin: Indo-Pacific Sensitivity (Level 2): Though generally tolerant, they need to be fed and placed properly (see below). Feeding: These corals have good prey capture ability and can feed on mysis shrimp and other meaty marine foods. Lighting (Level 5 to 7): Preferred lighting depends on species, but most prefer moderate (or intense but indirect) lighting. Water flow: Place in an area of moderate water flow. Placement: These corals can be quite aggressive, displaying long, powerful stinging sweeper tentacles. Please place them safety away from other corals. Do not keep with leather corals that may be toxic to larger polyped stony corals. Also avoid housing with hermit crabs. General: If not otherwise explained, slow tissue recession may be a sign of starvation. Target feeding may help this situation. These corals seem to be more susceptible to brown jelly disease than most other corals. To help prevent disease, be careful not to damage the coral while handling and avoid housing with hermit crabs that can irritate the coral's soft tissue.

top photo by Mike LaPorte last two photos by Charlie Ehlers

2007 © A S I R A

for information on general coral husbandry, sources and references, please see

www.A S I R A.org

Favia and Favites (and other moon corals)

Class Anthozoa, Order Scleractinia, Family Faviidae, Genera Favia and Favites

Common names: moon coral, brain coral Natural origin: Indo-Pacific Sensitivity (Level 1 to 2): Sensitivity depends a bit on the species, but most are quite tolerant, forgiving and easy to care for. Feeding: Most species have considerable prey capture ability. All have feeder tentacles. However, like many corals, they can take some time to "settle in" to a new home. They should be fed at night since this is when they will usually extend their feeder tentacles. If after several weeks your coral is still not extending feeder tentacles, you can try to encourage a feeding response with night-time target feeding. When doing this, wait one hour after lights go off before feeding. Turn water flow off so that the food can fall and rest onto the coral. Give the coral an hour or two to "grab hold" of the food, then turn water flow back on. Do this regularly until feeder tentacles extend regularly in anticipation of feeding. Once your coral is readily extending feeding tentacles, it will be able to catch food from the current without any assistance. Lighting (Level 4 to 7): These corals can adapt to a range of light intensities. Like any coral, they can bleach if not properly acclimated to a sudden change in lighting. Water flow: Moderate to strong water flow is best. Stronger water flow may help encourage feeding tentacle extension. Placement: These corals seem to do best when placed on a hard surface or up on rocks (sand can cause some irritation). Aggression varies considerably between species. Some have sweeper tentacles (stinging tentacles that can extend several inches), but some don't. Don't assume that your coral does not have sweeper tentacles just because you haven't seen them. They may only extend them at night or when you haven't been watching. General: This is a huge group of corals including the Favid and Favites genera. They are often confused with Blastomussa, Micromussa, Acanthastrea and other similar appearing corals. If not otherwise explained, slow tissue recession may be a sign of starvation. Careful target feeding as described previously may help this situation.

for information on general coral husbandry, sources and references, please see

www.A S I R A.org

Fungiidae

Class Anthozoa, Order Scleractinia, Family Fungiidae, Genera Heliofungia, Fungia, Polyphyllia, and Lithophyllon

Common names: disc coral, plate coral, tongue coral, fungia, mushroom coral Natural origin: Indo-Pacific Sensitivity (Level 1 to 3): Sensitivity depends on genus and species. Species from the genus Fungia are generally tolerant and tend to have excellent success rates among aquarists. Heliofungia species (often distinguished by their long tentacles) have a reputation for being much harder to care for and experience relatively poor success rates in aquaria. Feeding: These corals have strong prey capture ability and can feed on chunky, meaty marine foods. The size of the food should fit the size of the coral's polyp mouth or mouths. Lighting (Level 5 to 8): These corals can adapt to a range of lighting conditions, but most need at least moderate lighting for good health and growth. As always, proper acclimation to new lighting conditions is important. Water flow: They do well in areas of moderate water flow. Placement: These corals should be placed on a flat surface (sand beds are usually best, but gravel and bare bottoms will do). They can be a bit aggressive, so please give a little room. General: These corals can be quite dynamic. They can move independently across flat surfaces (even up to several inches overnight) and can sometimes even flip themselves over after falling upside down. Tentacles usually come out at night, but in captivity they can come out during the day too (or instead). In healthy tanks, they can show remarkable recovery from injury or disease. They're also known for occasionally producing babies called "anthocauli" upon their death.

bottom photo by Jason Huber

Acropora

Class Anthozoa, Subclass Hexacorallia, Order Scleractinia, Family Acroporidae, Genus Acropora

Common names: staghorn coral, table coral, branching or plating Acropora Natural origin: Indo-Pacific, Caribbean Sensitivity (Level 3 to 4): Acropora species are relatively intolerant of unstable and less than ideal conditions. Sensitivity varies widely depending on the particular species and whether wild or aquacultured. To increase chances of success, do not attempt to Acropora them in tanks less than a year old. Significant fluctuations in temperature and/or water quality can be deadly. Feeding: These corals have small polyps and poor prey capture ability. They consume foods of very small particle size. For example, oyster eggs, with a particle size of about 50μ, are a good food for these corals. In a well fed tank with a variety of food, additional feeding might not be necessary. Lighting (Level 7 to 10): Though adaptable, Acropora spp. tend to grow faster and fair better under more intense lighting. The ideal lighting for any particular coral will depend on the species and/or the depth and clarity of the water where it was collected or cultured. As with any zooxanthellate coral, coloration can change in response to changing lighting conditions. And as always, sudden changes in lighting conditions can result in bleaching. Be sure to acclimate properly. Water flow: Acropora spp. need strong, turbulent water for effective feeding, good health and to prevent sediment damage. Place these corals in the highest area of water flow in the tank. Placement: Place safely away from aggressive corals and be careful of fast-growing encrusting corals that will compete for space. General: Acropora spp. are often vulnerable to disease and predation by certain species of coral-eating flatworms, nudibranches, and tiny crustaceans called "red bugs." To prevent an infestation, carefully inspect and quarantine all new corals for 2 to 3 weeks before allowing them into the main tanks. Steady, healthy calcium (400 to 450 ppm) and alkalinity (3.0 to 4.5 meq/L) levels are important for coral health and growth.