Bubble Coral & Maroon Clown

I recently added this maroon clown and it has become attached to the bubble coral. This is a bit odd since they do that with anemones. They have a neat relationship and the clown now nips my hand every time that it gets too close to the coral as he defends his home.

Bubble Coral

Another type of coral that I wanted to have for a long time! This was a nice looking piece from the LFS. At home, it doubled in size almost immediately. It has been doing great since the introduction on 2/4/07. The sweeping tentacles pack a punch, so I am keeping an eye on the surroundings.


Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy; Light: Moderate; Water Flow: Low to Medium; Placement: Bottom; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: White, Yellow; Temperament: Aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements; Origin: Fiji; Family: Caryophylliidae

Red Mushrooms

Awesome colors! I have been trying to get these guys for a while. Red mushrooms are a bit pricier than all the other mushrooms. Also, at the store they usually sell you one or two… otherwise it is a pricy piece. This was a piece of rock with several of them. Someone trade it in at the store and that was my best opportunity. They were added on 2/4/07. I can’t wait for them to cover the entire rock.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Moderate; Light: Moderate; Water Flow: Low to Medium; Placement: All; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Bright Red, Pinkish Purple; Temperament: Semi-aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Iodine, Trace Elements; Origin: Indonesia; Family: Actinodiscidae/Discosomatidae.

Nephthya

Added on 5/28, this soft coral has almost doubled in size. It is up in the middle of the tank now. This picture is a close up that shows the detail of the branches and the feeding tubes. It is a great coral since it is easy to keep and it is truly beautiful. The problem is that it grows really quick so you have to watch the area around it for compatibility issues.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy, Light: Moderate to High, Water Flow: Medium to Strong, Placement: All, Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12, Color Form: Brown, Cream, Gray, Green, Temperament: Semi-aggressive, Ideal Supplements: Iodine, Strontium, Trace Elements, Origin: Indo-Pacific, Family: Nephtheidae.

Galaxea

This is my favorite coral. The piece is very large and I was able to trade in another coral in order to get a good price for it. Yet another coral that has amazing movements with the water flow. It is fairly aggressive since it has feeding tentacles that extend about 6-7 inches out and it sting anything around it.


Quick Stats: Care Level: Moderate, Light: Moderate to High
Water Flow: Medium, Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12, Color Form: Green, Temperament: Aggressive, Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Iodine, Strontium, Trace Elements, Family: Oculinidae.

Briareum

This is a great looking coral, and very strange. With water movement, it looks like feathers in the wind. I have had it for several months and just realized that I missed writing down when did I actually bought it. I have it right in the middle at the top of the rocks and it loved the light and water circulation. In the base, it started growing towards a rock and it is spreading fast.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy, Light: High, Water Flow: Strong
Placement: All, Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4, Color Form: Brown, Gray, Green, Orange, Purple, Temperament: Semi-aggressive, Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Iodine, Strontium, Trace Elements, Origin: Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, Western Pacific, Family: Briareidae.

Finger Leather Coral

This piece was added on 7/30/06. It is growing fast. The coral is not colorful, but when it is open it looks neat with the tiny feeders out. What bothers me about this one is that it stays closed for days at a time. I am still figuring out whether it is normal behavior. I think it will be ok since it keeps opening and growing.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Moderate; Light: High; Water Flow: Medium to Strong; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Brown, Tan; Temperament: Semi-aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Iodine, Strontium, Trace Elements; Origin: Indo-Pacific; Family: Alcyoniidae

Polyps

I have several of these little guys. They have been in the tank since 3/5/06. Their colors are awesome. These are green and yellow polyps. The green ones are very static. The yellow ones are neat because their longer strings look like moving hair under water. They swing side to side with the water movement. This yellow colony started with a couple of babies that dropped from the large colony and they propagated quickly. Polyps are very easy to maintain and are the perfect coral for beginner reefers.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy; Light: Moderate; Water Flow: Medium; Placement: Middle; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Bright Yellow; Temperament: Semi-aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Iodine, Trace Elements; Origin: Indonesia; Family: Parazoanthidae.

Cabbage Leather Coral

The cabbage coral is pretty simple, no fancy colors and no movement. However, I like the shape. The top looks like a flower and has a neat leathery appearance. They stretch and contract with the light cycle. It is very hardy and doing well since the introduction to the tank in 3/19/06.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy; Light: Moderate to High; Water Flow: Medium to Strong; Placement: Top; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Brown, Cream, Tan
Temperament: Semi-aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Iodine, Strontium, Trace Elements; Origin: Indonesia; Family: Alcyoniidae

Mixed Zoanthids

This group of mixed-color Zoanthids is one of the newer additions. They were added on 8/27/06. As I run out of space in the tank I am more careful about what I add and when. This coral is very easy to maintain and it looks great. The tank has been running for close to a year now. There are corals that have nearly doubled in size and I now have to watch how the distances between them get smaller. Soon, compatibility issues come up and I relocate corals accordingly.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Easy; Light: Moderate; Water Flow: Medium; Placement: Middle to Top; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Green, Orange; Temperament: Semi-aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Trace Elements, Iodine; Origin: Indonesia; Family: Zoanthidae

Frogspawn

This frogspawn is a truly great looking coral. It is very calmed and colorful. It has been in the tank since 5/28/06. It has never given me any trouble. It seems to be fairly strong and easy to keep. It is a great addition to any collection. It was a bit pricier though, so I had to wait for the right sale at the local fish store.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Moderate; Light: Moderate to High; Water Flow: Medium; Placement: Bottom; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Green, Pale Brown, Tan
Temperament: Aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements; Origin: Indo-Pacific; Family: Caryophylliidae

Plate Coral

This is a Long tentacle plate coral. It was added to the tank on 4/9/06. It has been doing great since the first day. However, it is a bit aggressive. It got into a bit of a fight with the frogspawn and they both lost some arms. At night, the lunar lights in the tank light up the body in bright yellows and greens. The tips of the tentacles are bright blue under the lunar lights as well. I recommend this one to beginners since it is hardy and the cost is reasonable.

Quick Stats: Care Level: Moderate; Light: Moderate; Water Flow: Medium; Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4; dKH 8-12; Color Form: Brown, Gray, Green, White; Temperament: Aggressive; Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements; Origin: Indonesia; Family: Fungiidae

I am a reefer!

I am a reefer. This means that I am passionate about salt water tanks. I have a 75 gallon tank with a few fish and a several corals. The pic above is from the middle of the tank. I can spend hours looking at the life in the tank. It is a hard hobby to get into since keeping a reef can be time consuming. I have been in the hobby for almost 20 years.