Corals For The Reef Aquarium

Corals are broken down into three main groups; soft corals, LPS(Large Stony Polyp) and SPS(Small Stony Polyp). Each of these groups of corals requires typically different lighting, current, and feeding requirements in order to live and flourish in the reef aquarium.

Soft Corals

This group is typically defined as not having a stony skeleton and the base is attached to a live rock or has overgrown dead skeleton of a stony coral. This includes species such as Xenia, Zooanthids, Mushroom Anemones, Gorgonian, Colt, Star Polyps, Glove and Carnation. Many of these contain zooanthellae and require moderate lighting as well as a diet of zooplankton. Some species such as Carnation have no zooanthellae and must be fed. They should be placed under over hangs or caves to avoid strong lighting and tend to expand and feed at night. Soft corals are the easiest to keep in a reef aquarium, requiring less light, and are less sensitive to water quality than other corals.

LPS(Large Stony Polyp) cORALS

LPS corals have large calcareous skeletons with large fleshy polyps. Almost all are caught wild as they are the most difficult to propagate in an aquarium. They range in difficulty to keep from very easy to some of the most difficult. Many LPS corals have strong stinging capability similar to an anemone and care must be used in their placement so that they cannot reach their neighbors. Many LPS corals also have long tentacles called sweeper tentacles which are longer than the normal tentacles and are used to 'clear' other corals away from their immediate vicinity. Easy to keep LPS corals are Fox, Hammer, Candy Cane, Torch, Open Brain, and Bubble. Difficult to keep corals are Goniopora, Galaxea, and Elegance.

SPS(Small Stony Polyp) Corals

SPS corals are the most diverse and difficult to keep in a reef aquarium. They should only be kept in a well established aquarium with excellent water quality and no filamentous algae. They also require higher calcium and strotium levels, stronger currents and more intense lighting to grow and flourish.