Reef Discussion
Good!
It's a Goniopora I think.
I was hoping others on this forum would awaken and supply further information.
Corals for beginners? There are heaps of resources on the internet for you to look at the easier corals. In general, don't go off LFS recommendations. There are a handful of LFS I trust to give info about corals, but I won't name them here.
My suggestions...
Toadstool leather corals (I have small ones that appear to stay small).
Morphs and Rhodacti (research mushroom corals)
Polyzoas
Some zoas
Hydnophora (when you have had the tank running for maybe one year)
Keep in mind that you can start off with these and then later trade them with other people.
Buy from other people who have gotten bored with their bullet-proof beginners corals and are looking to try more difficult corals. This way you get into the hobby with corals that have been acclimatized to being kept by people and not with freshly collected coral from the ocean. My first corals came from a guy who I think had given up after all his expensive corals had died and I got the leftovers, which were absolutely bulletproof and I have had these same coral for over three years. I am ready to sell some because either I need the room to keep more difficult corals or because they have propagated and I need to cut them back.
It's a Goniopora I think.
I was hoping others on this forum would awaken and supply further information.
Corals for beginners? There are heaps of resources on the internet for you to look at the easier corals. In general, don't go off LFS recommendations. There are a handful of LFS I trust to give info about corals, but I won't name them here.
My suggestions...
Toadstool leather corals (I have small ones that appear to stay small).
Morphs and Rhodacti (research mushroom corals)
Polyzoas
Some zoas
Hydnophora (when you have had the tank running for maybe one year)
Keep in mind that you can start off with these and then later trade them with other people.
Buy from other people who have gotten bored with their bullet-proof beginners corals and are looking to try more difficult corals. This way you get into the hobby with corals that have been acclimatized to being kept by people and not with freshly collected coral from the ocean. My first corals came from a guy who I think had given up after all his expensive corals had died and I got the leftovers, which were absolutely bulletproof and I have had these same coral for over three years. I am ready to sell some because either I need the room to keep more difficult corals or because they have propagated and I need to cut them back.
Yes, it is a Goniopora sp, also known as a Flowerpot or Golfball coral.
There are a number of different species which can be hard to identify but, as a generalisation, the red coloured ones are arguably the easiest to keep long term.
They do require regular feeding of the correct size foods which can cause problems with water quality etc.
I suspect that a lot of new reef keepers have purchased one of these as they are a beautiful coral when fully extended, and relatively cheap. But, I also suspect that the vast majority would be dead within 6 months.
As mentioned above, an experienced reef keeper is likely to have more long term success with these corals.
It's great that you are asking questions before buying :)
There are a number of different species which can be hard to identify but, as a generalisation, the red coloured ones are arguably the easiest to keep long term.
They do require regular feeding of the correct size foods which can cause problems with water quality etc.
I suspect that a lot of new reef keepers have purchased one of these as they are a beautiful coral when fully extended, and relatively cheap. But, I also suspect that the vast majority would be dead within 6 months.
As mentioned above, an experienced reef keeper is likely to have more long term success with these corals.
It's great that you are asking questions before buying :)
Hmmm
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/12/invertshttp://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/12/inverts
I am 4months in with mine, no issues at all..
Seems fairly easy to me.
Lets see what happens over the next few months hey.
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/12/invertshttp://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/12/inverts
I am 4months in with mine, no issues at all..
Seems fairly easy to me.
Lets see what happens over the next few months hey.
Not sold on this regular feeding business i have several gonis. my purple goni is almost 7 years old and has spent the last three years closed up, still growing, drops babies every now and then, i have a red with blue eye going on 3 years and a turquoise one for a year so far and they have never been fed once, not ever....
everyones system is a bit different hey, some corals just seem to adapt better then others..
i think its a hell of a lot of pot luck, my opinion is group them, keep a ultra low nutrient system and try mimic natural lighting as best as can, this seems to be easier with the programable LED systems now.
@Coralfarmer that article also debunks the regular feeding myth.
That might have been the case in 2002 but a lot can change in a few years ;)
Since that time, many more foods have become available which are better suited to the needs of corals such as Goniopora's.
[url]http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-10/nftt/index.php[/url], whilst only a few years later provides a different perspective.
@Lesley what is your experience with this coral?
I feed the tank randomly - return pump off, wavemakers blasting
Good read @MagicJ , more info for the noggin!
- marine snow one day
- reef roids another day
- sometimes target feeding, which they seem to accept - but its rare, once a month
- my clowns host the long tentacle goni, in my journal, you can see plenty of pictures
- super full extension, loving life, I hope, I guess the test will come down the track, people seem to have a lot of trouble with them 1yr ++ - they either make it, or they don't
Good read @MagicJ , more info for the noggin!
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These coral come from turbid waters, dirtyish with lots of nutrients in the water. They also do not like being on sand generally.
They can certainly be kept, I've had a green and a purple for quite some time and my feeding routine is similar to Dimitri above. The longer you keep the fine particle foods in the tank, the better. So that means the longer the return is off the better but as above says, keep the powerheads going. Also keeping them is one thing, keeping them nicely coloured is a further challenge.
You'll need to have equipment/routine that can handle the food load. A simple filter sock can do it if you're vigilant about changing it for a clean one. This coral generally prefers to be in the middle to top of tank with decent flow.
I'm no expert however I've kept aquaria for 40 years, marine for about 6. I personally think Reefroids should be included in any food regime for goni's, in fact they were developed specifically to feed this coral as they were considered impossible to keep not so long ago. You can also in adittion use small particle liquid foods (ie Marine Snow) and I use a home mix which is basically raw prawn, raw white fish, raw squid, spirulina, amino acids and frozen baby brine shrimp. I blend it to a fine mush, freeze it as a flat sheet in a plastic bag, then cut it into blocks. If you go this method, you need to thaw the blocks and rub it between your fingers in the tank water to get fine particles, otherwise the fish get to it first and the corals get very little. :)
They can certainly be kept, I've had a green and a purple for quite some time and my feeding routine is similar to Dimitri above. The longer you keep the fine particle foods in the tank, the better. So that means the longer the return is off the better but as above says, keep the powerheads going. Also keeping them is one thing, keeping them nicely coloured is a further challenge.
You'll need to have equipment/routine that can handle the food load. A simple filter sock can do it if you're vigilant about changing it for a clean one. This coral generally prefers to be in the middle to top of tank with decent flow.
I'm no expert however I've kept aquaria for 40 years, marine for about 6. I personally think Reefroids should be included in any food regime for goni's, in fact they were developed specifically to feed this coral as they were considered impossible to keep not so long ago. You can also in adittion use small particle liquid foods (ie Marine Snow) and I use a home mix which is basically raw prawn, raw white fish, raw squid, spirulina, amino acids and frozen baby brine shrimp. I blend it to a fine mush, freeze it as a flat sheet in a plastic bag, then cut it into blocks. If you go this method, you need to thaw the blocks and rub it between your fingers in the tank water to get fine particles, otherwise the fish get to it first and the corals get very little. :)
In relation to beginner corals, these are generally accepted as pretty hardy:
Beyond that, as a beginner you should avoid SPS corals and venture into LPS corals if you want variety. Some donut corals are reasonably easy. Always check aggression levels before you buy, they can be vicious little buggers :)
- mushrooms
- most zooanthids (zoos)
- most leather corals
- xenia
- Green Star Polyps (GSP)
Beyond that, as a beginner you should avoid SPS corals and venture into LPS corals if you want variety. Some donut corals are reasonably easy. Always check aggression levels before you buy, they can be vicious little buggers :)
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