High Tide Aquatics

Goniopora Coral

sid700

sid700

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Are people able to keep these nowadays? I just saw nice red one with purple centers. I felt like buying it but I remember reading they are hard to keep.

I'm seeing more now in LFSs and other Reefer's tanks so I'm wondering if there are tank-raised being put in the market.
 
Yes, I know people are keeping certain types. I have a little frag of a flourescent pink with purple center that I have had for a few months now. I read up on them and found others keeping, growing, and selling them. Basically, they eat foods similar to SPSs. Different species require different conditions, so you should study up on the species you want to keep and their requirements. The food most commonly accepted by many of them was oyster eggs.

Good luck and hope this helps. :)
 
The reds do OK and in some cases grow very well, the greens are near impossible and were the bulk of what was imported 10-20 years ago. Your best bet (as always) is to find a captive propped piece, not a chopped piece, but an actual frag grown in a hobbyists tank.
 
Jeremy, do you have any theories as to why the greens are so near impossible to sustain in captivity for a long period of time, compared to the reds?
 
I believe that the reds are more of a reef crest animal versus the greens/browns which are inner reef animals. There's quite a difference in not only water quality in the inner reef, there's also a difference in plankton density and variety.
 
Besides being red, are there other features in the Goniopora I should look for? Like should all polyps be extended? How can I know if it's healthy?
 
Look for any signs of tissue recession around the edges of the frag, best bet is to find one with new growth. The polyps should be extended and fat, also, make sure the color is deep and rich you don't want anything that is at all bleached, that is a bad sign.
 
FWIW, I bought a frag from Neptune and it's doing just fine. Like tuberider said, any tissue recession is a definite no-no. Other than that, as long as it's good color and decent extension it should hopefully do OK.
 
Same here as with phishphood. My green frag from Neptune's done great over the past 3 months. My original bright green one (not bought at Neptune) didn't make it a year though even though the other 3 gonioporas have done well. :O I've had most success with the blueberry and red ones, both of which have grown significantly. I primarily target feed cyclopeze a couple times a week and will also feed Oyster Eggs when I buy some.
 
CookieJar said:
... I primarily target feed cyclopeze a couple times a week and will also feed Oyster Eggs when I buy some.
Click to expand...

Do they need to be target fed? I prefer just "dosing" the tank with food like Oyster feast.
 
I'm not the goniopora expert, but I think it's recommended to target feed unless the dosing gives enough food for capture. probably there are goni's that do well w/o target feeding but I never tried it that way and I don't know how much broadcast feeding is enough.
 
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