Scientific
Name: Catalaphyllia jardinei
Classification: LPS
Common Name: Elegance Coral
Description:
To the uninitiated, the Elegance coral looks a lot like an anemone. It has
a cone-shaped base from which the large fleshy polyps and tentacles are extended
during the day. The color is usually green or light brown with green
high-lights and pink, yellow or blue tentacle tips. Elegance corals can
grow fairly large and become the dominate specimen in a smaller tank.
Veron: Colonies are
flabello-meandroid with straight edged septa forming wide V-shaped
valleys. Valleys are evenly spaced and have sharp edged walls.
Septa are widely spaced. There are no columellae. Polyps have
large tubular tentacles extending from large fleshy oral discs.
Forms satellite colonies (like the poritid Goniopora stokesi) in
aquaria. Color is distinctive green with pink tentacle tips and a
striped oral disc.
Natural Environment:
Veron: Occurs in protected, preferably turbid
water.
Care:
Hardiness: Elegance coral is
usually considered to be very hardy. There have been reports over the last
2 years or so that success with this coral is becoming less common and the
reason why is not yet understood. Elegance will occasionally withdraw
their tentacles and inflate their bodies into a contorted shape. This may be in an effort to expel waste products and
should not be a cause for concern. If they remain like this for more
than a couple of days, it may be a sign that they are not happy for some
reason and you should investigate water conditions and verify that nothing
is attacking the coral.
Lighting: Requires moderate to strong lighting.
Water Current: Elegance corals prefer low to moderate water
flow. Optimum water flow is enough to lightly wave its tentacles. They will
tolerate stronger water flows, but will expand less and the tentacles will
become stubbier as shown in the picture to the right.
Temperature: Does well within a range of at least 75º to 84º F
Aggressiveness: High. The Elegance coral packs a fairly powerful
sting and can expand greatly, so it is best to give it plenty of room to
expand without coming into contact with other corals.
Feeding: Elegance coral is photosynthetic and requires no direct
feeding, but an occasional feeding of shrimp or other meaty food up to once a
week is appreciated.
Supplements: Maintaining correct calcium levels is important for
skeletal development
Tank Positioning: Best positioning is normally in the bottom of the
tank with the cone base embedded in the substrate as it is found in the
wild. If tank lighting is low, it is acceptable to mount the coral up on
the live rock closer to the lighting.
