Placement of bubble coral

[molybdenumman]

I'm getting a bubble coral this afternoon and wanted some opinions as to where to place it in my tank. It's a small specimen. I have a 50g tank (48"X12"X18"deep) with live rock and two maxijet 900 powerheads pointed at each other across the back of the tank. I use aragonite as my substrate. Lighting = PC 2X65W 10000K + 2X65W actinics.

Should I place it in the sand, near rockwork, under rockwork?

I have not had much success with these corals before and I really want this one to thrive.

Thanks

MoMan

[kuatto]

Just found this on Live aquaria.com,hope it helps :biggrin:



"The Plerogyra Bubble Coral is a large polyp stony (LPS) coral and is also referred to as a Grape, or Octobubble Coral. Its genus name, Plerogyra, comes from the Latin pleres (full) and gyros (wide circle), which describes the round or oval, bubble-shaped, polyps resembling a cluster of grapes when open during the day. It is an aggressive coral with long sweeper tentacles that will sting corals that are placed in close proximity to it in the reef aquarium. It can also sting the reef aquarist who tries to handle it when its sweeper tentacles are out, so precaution should be taken.

It requires low to moderate lighting combined with low to moderate water movement in the aquarium. For continued good health, it will also need the addition of calcium, strontium, and other trace elements to the water.

It will benefit from additional food fed weekly in the form of brine shrimp or micro-plankton."

[DOO-E]

Those sweeper tenticles can be up to 6 inches each. But if the coral doesnt fel threatened by other corals it wont extend them.

[molybdenumman]

Do people place them in the sand? On the rocks? In shaded areas?

[Quagmire]

I don't think it matters to the coral if you place it in the sand or in the rocks.If it was me ,I would place it in the rocks and use gel glue to fasten it down,I think it would keep falling over in the sand.I think with 260w of light,the middle 1/3 of the tank would be about right for a moderate light coral.This is all just a guess and I'm baseing it on my hammer and torch coral needs.

[psuedo]

I like the look of my buuble up front and centre in the tank. I have it facing towards me, not the light. I just jammed mine into the rockwork, and it loves it there. This way, you can see the mouth of the coral as well.
This is my opinion, and it has worked well for me.

[Doug]

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/503/8bubble_clowns.jpg?7102

This bubble coral was over 10 yrs. old when I lost it to a rogue urchin and infection. :evil: I could barely get the base in two hands. It would easily fit into the palm of your hand when purchased.

Here is my experience,

1. They can grow very large. This one was over 1 1/2 sq. ft. when open and much more with its sweepers out. However it never bothered any corals in my tanks.

2. They like to eat. I have fed mine everything from silversides to flakes to frozen foods. Usually frozen mysis shrimp was its main course, when I fed it direct, which was not that often. It grabbed stuff from the water, as I usually fed pretty heavy.

3. Did not like very much current, just enough to move the bubbles but not distort them.

4. I had it both on the sandbed & in the rocks. It seemed to prefer the rocks or even a 4 in. pvc coupling base I had it sitting in, from another tank.

5. Always did best when placed at a bit of an angle. This pic shows it pretty well straight up, but it was low down in a 30in. deep tank, protected by rock walls on both sides.

6. Contrary to popular belief, mine loved the light. In my old tank back in Thompson, it recieved direct morning sunlight and did it ever love it. Did well under a vertical pendant/250w Iwasaki. In the pic here, its smack under a 400w radium.

7. Dont cramp it. Give it lots of expansion room but still somewhat sheltered.