Common Name: Elegance Coral

Scientific Name: Catalaphyllia Jardinei

Tank Size: 75 gallons or larger is recommended

Reef Safe:

Reef Safe. This coral will require a minimum of 4 inches of space in all directions due to sweeper tentacles that can divvy up a very potent sting to anything they come in contact with.

Tank Mates: N/A

Location: Indo-Pacific

Diet:

Derives some nutrition for its Zooxanthellate Algae. It is however a voracious feeder in the aquarium and will require regular feeding. Will eat bits of Crustacean flesh such as Krill, Shrimp and Brine Shrimp. Bits of cut fish flesh or pieces of cut squid may also be acceptable depending upon the individual in question. To maximize color and nutrition a variety of foods should be provided on a rotating basis.

Size: Can reach sizes up to 12 x 4 inches or there abouts.

Summary:

Animals collected in the mid 90’s or prior were noted to be pretty hardy animals. However recently obtained specimens have had a dismal track record at best in the reef aquarium for reasons that can’t be explained and has been the focal point of extensive research. Currently available species as such, should be reserved for the more advanced aquarist.

This coral generally features a harden cone shaped calcareous skeleton from which a single polyp is contained and having one or more mouths. The general coloration will be some shade of green with some species being very brilliant neon green with sharp contrasting purple tips and mottled flesh coloring.

This species generally will be found in the wild in mud or fine sand bottoms in turbid waters and nutrient rich lagoons. The skeleton will be buried with the fleshy polyps flush with the bottom of the sediment. As such it should be arranged in the reef tank in a similar position. Not doing so and placing it in the rock work of the aquarium will usually cause a number of negative effects such as “Polyp Bail Out”, or the delicate inflating tissue to be chaffed, torn or damaged by currents in the tank and this will usually result in Brown Jelly Infection a bane of many LPS corals and eventually death in all probability.

This coral will require moderate lighting as a minimum. Due to the wide variation of locations where this coral can be found in the wild, lighting can vary considerably and each individual should be acclimated to your tank lighting carefully.

Propagation of this coral while possible is very difficult and often a risky proposition, but has been successfully done by several aquarist.

Personal Experience:

A very striking coral especially under Actinics or 20K halides! All currently available specimens are very difficult to keep long term in the reef tank and should be avoided by all but the most advanced level aquarist. This coral should not be purchased on line as they ship very poorly, often arriving dead or very near death. One of the biggest killers of this coral is from Brown Jelly Infections. These corals are very susceptible to this malady and can rarely be saved once it sets in. Another observation I have made is that this coral does very poorly in tanks that have Caulerpa either in the display or refugium if one is plumbed into the system. I believe this is in large part do to the Chemical Growth Inhibitors given off by this Macro-Algae. In tanks with large numbers of Leather type corals will need to run activated carbon on a pretty regular basis to negate chemical warfare effects with in the aquarium. While most biologist agree that this coral needs only moderate light I have seen the best colors and polyp extension occur under moderately intense halides when properly acclimated.