Corals for Reef Home Aquarium : Most beginning aquarium hobbyists are a bit doubtful when starting a reef aquarium with marine corals. Their needs not being very well generalised, corals used to be almost impossible to keep for any period of time in a home aquarium.
With recent developments however, information products are now available so that corals can be successfully maintained in a home aquarium. Most “home” corals are called easy because, as such they are easy to care for. Your home aquarium can be devoted to corals alone, but it could be more pleasant to add a few fish and other organisms to have a biological setup.
Here are some “easy” corals.
Button Polyps
Also known as Sea Mat, this type of corals like bright light, but are lenient with low light. Thriving medium to strong wave current, Button Polyps have a high procreation level and are very aggressive. Most aqua culturists, keep these corals during the cycle period.
Finger Leather
Also known as Colt, this type of coral are great for new reef aquarium. While they are pliable to most light and wave conditions, these spectacular corals like medium light and wave current.
Sea Mushroom
Sea mushroom do not respond to bright lights or strong wave currents, to permit highest growth and procreation, these corals are best maintained under lower lighting conditions such as pastel fluorescent lights, and with slow water currents. These corals are also very safe for most organisms but they are harmful to soft and rocky corals since they have harmful effects on most of them.
Toadstool
This type of corals is also known as Leather, Mushroom Leather and Trough Coral. There are great for new aquariums that fit well to most lighting designs and low to medium wave currents. These corals grow fast and are known great for procreation.
Brain Corals
Brain corals are also known as Closed Brain Coral, Meat Coral and Pacific Cactus. These corals are very great in artificial environment, but they thrive in bright, indirect light, and slow to medium wave currents. These corals are tolerant to the presence of some stony corals such as Litphyton and are very rash to aquatic planktons.
Open Brain Corals
Open Brain Corals are also known as Lobed Brain Coral, Flat Brain Coral, Modern Meat Coral and Flower Coral. These type of corals do great with bright lighting and slow wave currents, however if simply enough light and water current is provided, it will expand well in an aquarium. The Open Brain Coral feeds nocturnally, however the tentacles seldom extend during the day and readily take planktons. They are not usually active however there have been experimental results of sweep tentacles at growth when they are near with other species of corals.
Green Star Polyps
Also known as Daisy Polyps, this type of corals are bearable of both extreme level of lightings as well as wave currents. Being receptive to iodine and aluminum oxide that are found in some phosphate eliminating sponges, care should be taken when adding these polyps to your reef aquarium.
Zoanthids
Similar to button polyps, these corals also prefer bright lightings but can bear low lights and like moderate to strong wave currents, making them a good addition to new reef aquariums. These active corals have a high procreation rate and can be spread fast inside an aquarium.
