Sun corals

[ryangrieder]

i have a colony around 30 heads, orange, and half is covered and half not. the whole thing opens when i feed it but noticed the ones under the cave open faster. i actually have a question though. mine ONLY open with i feed them. do u normally feed them while closed so then they open or what? also what do u feed yours? i mix mysis and zooplex in a cup and squirt them with a turkey baster.

 

[reefmaster30]

Sun coral DO NOT need light they need to be feed but light is not a necessity

 

[ming]

I usually feed the fish a little at first, go away for 10 minutes, come back and the sun coral is open from the taste of mysis in the water. Then you can feed the sun coral, and the fish eat some more what doesn't get onto the sun coral. I feed primarily hikari mysis

 

[Marcellina]

I do the same as ming. Whenever I feed my tank the suncorals open up after awhile bc the sense the food. Then I will use a turkey baster to squirt frozen mysis and sometimes cyclopeeze around the polyps. I dont feed them all in one shot. After they close up to eat I let them be for a little while then I come back and they are open and happy again and I finish squirting some more food over them.

 

[DREUTZ]

My sun coral is getting a thanksgiving dinner tonight so it opens haha. Thanks again for the advice thus far... Once I get it to open how often should I feed it?

 

[daisy]

every second or third day will keep it alive.

Every day will keep it healthy and lovely and growing

twice a day or more and you'll actually see it puke.

(not entirely joking)

 

[Chris Jury]

Ditto what others have said. There are a few species of Tubastraea that show up in the trade, most of which are yellow/orange, but a couple of which are blackish (or very dark green). T. mircantha is a branching black/dark green species that is probably the most challenging IME. They need strong current and TONS of food to do well. Usually they come in in really bad shape, making it difficult to nurse them back to health. The other species all form dome-shaped skeletons, like those pictured above, and are much easier to keep healthy. Plenty of food and they're not otherwise very picky.