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Feeding tentacles extended at night (Flash used)
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Feeding on shrimp
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Scientific
Name: Plerogyra sinuosa
Classification: LPS
Common Names: Bubble Coral
Description:
Bubble corals are characterized by having large water filled bubbles (vesicles)
covering large sharp sepia. The vesicles are expanded during the day and
look like cream colored grapes. During the night the vesicles
are deflated and tentacles become apparent.
Veron: Colonies are
flabello-meandroid with valleys more or less connected by a light blistery
coenosteum. Sometimes living parts of colonies are separated by dead
basal parts. Vesicles are the size of grapes and usually have the
shape of grapes but may be tubular, bifurcated or irregular, depending
primarily on the state of inflation. Color is cream or bluish-gray.
Natural Environment:
Veron: Protected reef environments,
especially, but not necessarily, in turbid water.
Care:
Hardiness: Bubble corals are
moderately hardy and sometimes take a while to adapt to the aquarium conditions
and start to grow.
Lighting: Prefers moderate to strong lighting, but will tolerate fairly
low light conditions.
Water Current: Bubble coral prefer low to moderate water currents and
lack of bubble extension may be related to excessive water current.
Temperature: Does well within a range of at least 75º to 84º F.
Aggressiveness: Moderate. Bubble coral packs a fairly potent
sting, but its sweeper tentacles are not much longer than the bubbles, so it can be positioned
fairly close to its neighbors. The picture to the right shows typical
sweeper tentacle size.
Feeding: Bubble coral is photosynthetic, but seem to benefit more
than many LPS corals from occasional direct feeding of shrimp or other meaty food. Feeding up to
once a week will result in faster growth.
Supplements: Maintaining correct calcium levels is important for
skeletal development.
Tank Positioning: Best positioning is usually not critical as long as
it is not in the path of a strong current flow.
Note: Specimen identification and natural habitat Veron
(2000)
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