Common Name: Trumpet Coral, Candy Cane Coral

Scientific Name: Caulastrea Spp.

Tank Size: Moderate sized tanks of 40 gallons or bigger

Lighting: Prefers moderate to high lighting

Reef Compatibility:

Generally a hardy coral when healthy is some what aggressive and will send out sweeper tentacles extending up to a couple of inches beyond inflated polyps.

Feeding:

Zooxanthellate. Needs to be occasionally feed within the tank for best results.

Size: Colonies can reach up to 12”

Summary:

In natural settings this coral can often be found in deeper or somewhat turbid lagoon waters. As such some individuals may not do well under intensely lit reef tanks. This coral will benefit considerably from erratic moderate water current which will better flush away discarded waste. During target feeding, you will want to turn off the pumps and allow the small bits of food to fall into the oral disk where it can be consumed. As with all LPS corals, they must be very carefully handled and placed with in the aquarium, as should the delicate polyps get damaged they are subject to “Brown Jelly Infection”. Once afflicted with this malady the out look is not a good one and will often result in lose of the whole coral.

Personal Experience:

Overall, it’s a very hardy LPS coral. Under proper tank conditions it will grow rapidly. Larger colonies can easily be “fragged” by breaking off branches well below the polyps. When properly acclimated I have gotten far better results with growing this coral under moderate halide lighting. As mentioned in the summary, Brown Jelly Infection is a threat to this coral. In my experience, dipping a coral in Lugol’s or SeaChems reef dip will sometimes limit the damage and subsequent loss to just one or two heads and prevent a complete loss of the coral.