List me your favorite corals.

[Altohombre]

I decided I want to get corals instead of just a FOWLR tank. I don't know much about what corals are what and I'm still excited anyway. Please list your favorite corals that a beginner could handle, why you like it, and if you have a picture please share it.

Thanks,
Matt

 

[RyanG]

Heres an Article on beginner corals

https://www.livingreefs.com/forums/saltwater-aquarium-articles/2213-beginners-coral-primer.html

 

[Bifferwine]

Of course, the easiest corals of all are zoanthids, mushrooms and softies. I don't really like softies. The only softies I have in my tank are Kenya trees (and I SOOOO WISH I didn't have them), xenia and two leathers (a toadstool and a cabbage).

With mushrooms and zoanthids, the possibilities as far as color goes are endless. They come in every shape, size and color and are perfect for beginners.

Some of the best beginner corals are Euphyllia -- frogspawn, torch and hammer. They are pretty easy to keep and are very nice looking.

Bubble corals and fox corals are personal favorites of mine and are easy (I love LPS -- can you tell??).

Blastomussa are one of my favorite corals of all time, but they are usually relatively expensive, kind of hard to find nice specimens, and are not as easy as the other ones I listed above.

 

[Doc]

I agree with Biff that hammers and torch corals are good and easy. I also like frogspawn, bubble corals and pom pom xenia. You need to decide what kind of reef you want to keep and plan for the specimens you want to keep before buying any. SPS and soft corals do not get along well in a small tank due to the chemicals they release. They can stunt the growth of SPS corals. People seem to downplay the value and beauty of soft corals. It is a shame since they can be very beautiful if done with the right fish. I have all soft corals with my angelfish and it makes a striking background. Good luck

-Doc

 

[Bifferwine]

I just don't like soft corals because they are all tank or pink or brown. Boring colors.

 

[Doc]

T-WHAT!!! Have you not seen the green nepthia? Yellow tonga leather? even yellow star polyps or GSP have such personality and don't get me started on gorgonias - they are the BOMB!!! that purple on them is unbelievable.

-Doc

 

[Bifferwine]

...Yawn...

 

[Doc]

wow....grumpy. Sure SPS corals are pretty, but EVERYONE has them - just trying to be different!

-Doc

 

[Bifferwine]

I don't like SPS too much either. I'm a fan of the LPS, zoas and shrooms, mostly.

 

[yote]

If you like softies,go with pom-pom xenia,any zoanthid you like the color of,shrooms.I'd stay away from kenya weeds though.Them things are almost as bad as hair algae and cyano.
For LPS,Torch,hammers,bubbles,about any you can think of.
The easiest SPS corals are the monties,even though there are a few easy acros.

 

[UnderwaterWorld]

Frogspawn is cool I have some, also look into zoos and button polyps both grow fast

 

[hotimportknight]

There are definate beginner corals, such as zoas mushrooms xenia etc. Just because they are easy to maintain doesn't mean you can't get some REALLY cool zoos (super colored with almost unlimited color combos.) shrooms with some neon colors (ricoread are my favorites, but you can't find them around here much.) I'm just ate the stage between beginner and advanced stuff starting to get some sps. Best thing to do would be go to a coral frag swap and check out what you like, know your lights and stuff and ask questions about them there, most people are much more knowledgeable and not out to sell as much as a lfs.

 

[reeffreak]

There are many SPS corals that are colorful but very few are considered beginner corals.I could list a ton of acropora and montipora that have some awesome colors.There are some soft corals and LPS that rival them in color and some even more so.There are many zoas and palys that have outstanding color.Here are three of the easy-moderate easy LPS corals that have unbelievable colors.I really left out some that others have already mentioned.

Acan

Blasto

Scolymia

I almost forgot-there are some brain and open brain corals that are colorful as well.

 

[UnderwaterWorld]

wow those are crazy colors! I don't have anything like that but they are great choices :)

 

[Doc]

yeah. buy you will pay for it. Acan Lords run about $50 a polyp, so an average frag will be about $300. A pretty penny for something that may kick the bucket in a week. Modern corals and Brains are a good bet due to their brilliance and hardiness. Plus the big fleshy corals feel good to play with....:shock:

-Doc

 

[reeffreak]

Acans are considered an easy coral.They have maricultured-aquacultured Acans that only cost $70 for 10 heads.

 

[hotimportknight]

Wow, that acan is probably the sweetest thing I've seen in a long time... Hope they have some of that at the frag swap in late june... Ill be all over that!

 

[Melonbob]

Damn, I can't find stuff like that. I'm a big fan of torches/frogspawns etc.

 

[Bifferwine]

Stuff like that usually has to be ordered online. At least at my LFS, the really nice specimens get snatched up within the first hour that they're put on display because every hardcore reefer in town knows what day and time they get their deliveries in :D.

 

[Melonbob]

You really shouldn't put softies and SPS together in the same tank if its small? Are there other rules I should be following? I'll admit, I didn't really put alot of research into coral, it's a bit overwhelming. I basically found a piece I liked, and asked if myself and my tank could handle it. I really want to get into some acans next, the colours are amazing.....