Leptoseris scabra + captive care

[pebbles]

I was taken by this coral at a shop.:razz: It was unidentified, very pricey and sold as 'sps deepwater'. There was a similar looking coral in Eric Borneman's book under Leptoseris. So the owner kindly got onto the phone to the collector who looked at his records and gave him the scientific name.

I'm very tempted to get it.

But what are its requirements? Is it difficult to care for etc... or does it do poorly in captivity?

 

[gas4544]

I have Borneman's Aquarium Corals book and looked it up. It recommends dim light and low water flow.

What color is the colony that you are interested in?

Also, what are the details of your tank? Do you have a low light area in the tank, perhaps under a rock ledge where you could place this colony?

I did an online search and could not find much information about this particular coral. It would be nice to have a rare coral in your tank that other people do not have.

Gary

 

[pebbles]

Thanks for your reply.

I also have eric's book, but in my edition at least he does not mention this species in there. Theres only a paragraph about Leptoseris in general, but there is a photo of L. papyracea. This coral looks pretty similar and the colour is green & brown. Not at all flashy but I like the leaflike formation. I think it'd look nice as part of a deepwater biotope I'm planning. The collector apparently got it from deepwater using a rebreather. I know its Australian since we can't import and probably from the GBR.

The coral would temporarily be housed in my coral QT of about 200L and would eventually end up in a much bigger DT. I'm not worried about providing subdued lighting or decent water quality but I'm unsure about flow. I also don't want anything with serious sweepers. Maybe someone has kept one and can offer some insight.

 

[Darthv247]

they have one at the LFS by me its tucked under the rocks deep in the tank. mixxed reef tank.

 

[kevinpo]

Hello,
They do not produce sweeper tentacles and cannot defend themselves from other corals very well. Identification down to the species level is very difficult in this Genus. I have kept L. Hawaiiensis which is nearly identical in growth and care. They can be kept under high light (400W halides) and will develop a nice green colour when the just the actinic lighting is on and light tan with the halides on. Under low light conditions it will be brown. You will have to acclimate it slowly to higher light if it has been kept under lower light conditions. Low to moderate flow will be fine. It is fairly hardy coral that grows slowly with an interesting shape but not very colorful.

Cheers,
Kevin

 

[kevinpo]

Here is a picture of mine from Jan 2003.

Cheers,
Kevin