Classification: Zoanthus
Coral Type : Soft Corals
Common Name: Zoanthids
Alt Common Name: Zoas, Zoos, Mat Coral, Carpet Coral, Sea Mat, Polyps
Distribution: Found in many ocean environments.
Lighting Requirements : Low to High Lighting
Aggression: Low, will be attacked and killed by most other corals. If kept with sps, it would be a good idea to surround sps with loose rocks, and remove when the zoanthids get too close. Due to their rate of growth, they can sometimes overwhelm such corals.
Hardiness: A very hardy coral that is great for beginners.
Growth Pattern : Grow and spread most successfully on rock or skeletons of dead corals, however they can grow on sand and the glass walls of your tank too.
Nutrition: Mainly zooxanthellate, light and dissolved nutrients is all that is needed for zoanthids to grow well.
Supplements Required: None needed
Care Difficulty: 2/10
Very Easy |
Moderate |
Very Difficult |
Water Flow Requirements :
None |
Low |
Moderate |
High |
Temperature Range: 76°F - 82°F
74 |
76 |
78 |
80 |
82 |
84 |
Additional Information : A soft, colonial coral that forms a mat of small, circular polyps. These polyps look a bit like tiny anemones with radial tentacles and a small central mouth. Zoanthids normally appear in brown and green, but can be found in just about any color imaginable.
Propagation Information : Zoanthids typically spread across rock and sand in a 360 degree pattern. Typical propagation methods include scraping polyps off of rock and supergluing them to other rocks or allowing the zoanthids to spread to ther rocks then seperating them by cutting.
Toxicity Information : These corals can be quite toxic and should always be handled with latex gloves. The corals tend to give off the most toxicity when disturbed or fragged.
