overanalyzer
Active Member
Coral of the Week: Galaxy Coral or Galaxea fascicularisand/or Galaxea astreata
Family: Oculinidae
Genus: Galaxea
Common Names:
Galaxy
starburst
crystal
star
durian
Green Star
This coral is surrounded by confusion. It is listed in many differing taxonomies so I will not spend too much time on the scientific tracings of the name. It is also listed as a difficult coral and hardy coral.
First, I need to express I do not have one of these corals and I have been doing some research on this particular coral. Having stated that let me go forward with the information.
The Galaxy Coral is an LPS coral which can be found in a variety of reefs world-wide. Galaxea fascicularis is the major Oculinidae coral found in the aquarium trade. The interesting fact about this coral is that it comes from a variety of different locations and can adapt to a variety of conditions in the home aquarium.
These corals are often lumped in with hammer and bubble corals but they are from a totally different family. The unique corallite stalk is being studied by experimental biologists and provides a fascinating study in the uptake of calcium.
The coral is fused coral base that has individual corallites (stalks) that give the coral a spiky appearance. The coral heads will be out during the day which give the coral a green, brown, yellow or blue appearance. Green and brown are the more prevalent colors for this coral. As the lights go out the sweeper tentacles for this coral will come out. These sweeper tentacles can reach a foot or so in length and can cause major damage to neighboring corals.
Locations in the wild: Typically found on close reefs and also within lagoons can be found in shallow water reefs with high current or deeper water reefs with moderate current. It is also found in the lagoon environment in turbid water (meaning the substrate is stirred up). On the Great Barrier Reef and in Okinawa they are found on the surface receiving a lot of light, in other locations they are found on the reef walls or lagoon floors.
The variety of locations makes the coral highly adaptable in the home aquarium. This makes it a hardy specimen for the hobbyist. The difficulty with the Galaxy coral is that it often has issues with shipping. The coral often has sponges which encrust on the tubular corallite’s stalks and in shipping those sponges will foul the shipping water and cause the coral to have a poor survival rate.
It is highly recommended that you buy either a propagated piece or watch the coral prior to purchase to make sure it is extending all polyps and even see if you can watch it in a lights out to make sure the sweeper tentacles are expanding.
Feeding: it is highly recommended that these corals be feed in addition to the uptake of nutrients through zooxanthella. The recommend way to feed these corals is to use small pieces of krill/silversides/natural ocean fish fed to the coral. These pieces should be smaller than ¼ of an inch in length (or smaller than the word inch typed here). There is also an experimental method feeding these by stirring up the substrate located near the coral in order to mimic the turbid environment where these corals are often found. It is also recommend that live brine/rotifers be feed in the tank as well.
Lighting in the home aquarium: Medium to High Lighting. From the ones I have seen and found I would suggest Metal Halides with a long introduction period to the lighting. It can also be kept near the surface with T5/VHO lighting. There are several gorgeous colonies that can be found on some German reef keeping sites.
Location: Can be located based upon lighting but CAUTION is needed in placement because of the long stinging sweeper tentacles.
Current: This coral thrives in a medium to medium high current. Please be aware that the tentacles will be spreading with the current so placement is key.
Propagation: This coral can be propagated with care (for the corallite stalks) and the sweeper tentacles. It is recommend to cut the fused coral base with several stalks. Home aquarists also have removed the coral as it has grown to large and found that they have left a stalk or two behind that continues to grow.
So can you please post some pictures and experiences if you have them?
Thanks!
Sources:
Anthony Calfo’s book of Coral propogation
Several websites including aqua-web.org and ozreef.com
The picture is from aqua-web.
Family: Oculinidae
Genus: Galaxea
Common Names:
Galaxy
starburst
crystal
star
durian
Green Star
This coral is surrounded by confusion. It is listed in many differing taxonomies so I will not spend too much time on the scientific tracings of the name. It is also listed as a difficult coral and hardy coral.
First, I need to express I do not have one of these corals and I have been doing some research on this particular coral. Having stated that let me go forward with the information.
The Galaxy Coral is an LPS coral which can be found in a variety of reefs world-wide. Galaxea fascicularis is the major Oculinidae coral found in the aquarium trade. The interesting fact about this coral is that it comes from a variety of different locations and can adapt to a variety of conditions in the home aquarium.
These corals are often lumped in with hammer and bubble corals but they are from a totally different family. The unique corallite stalk is being studied by experimental biologists and provides a fascinating study in the uptake of calcium.
The coral is fused coral base that has individual corallites (stalks) that give the coral a spiky appearance. The coral heads will be out during the day which give the coral a green, brown, yellow or blue appearance. Green and brown are the more prevalent colors for this coral. As the lights go out the sweeper tentacles for this coral will come out. These sweeper tentacles can reach a foot or so in length and can cause major damage to neighboring corals.
Locations in the wild: Typically found on close reefs and also within lagoons can be found in shallow water reefs with high current or deeper water reefs with moderate current. It is also found in the lagoon environment in turbid water (meaning the substrate is stirred up). On the Great Barrier Reef and in Okinawa they are found on the surface receiving a lot of light, in other locations they are found on the reef walls or lagoon floors.
The variety of locations makes the coral highly adaptable in the home aquarium. This makes it a hardy specimen for the hobbyist. The difficulty with the Galaxy coral is that it often has issues with shipping. The coral often has sponges which encrust on the tubular corallite’s stalks and in shipping those sponges will foul the shipping water and cause the coral to have a poor survival rate.
It is highly recommended that you buy either a propagated piece or watch the coral prior to purchase to make sure it is extending all polyps and even see if you can watch it in a lights out to make sure the sweeper tentacles are expanding.
Feeding: it is highly recommended that these corals be feed in addition to the uptake of nutrients through zooxanthella. The recommend way to feed these corals is to use small pieces of krill/silversides/natural ocean fish fed to the coral. These pieces should be smaller than ¼ of an inch in length (or smaller than the word inch typed here). There is also an experimental method feeding these by stirring up the substrate located near the coral in order to mimic the turbid environment where these corals are often found. It is also recommend that live brine/rotifers be feed in the tank as well.
Lighting in the home aquarium: Medium to High Lighting. From the ones I have seen and found I would suggest Metal Halides with a long introduction period to the lighting. It can also be kept near the surface with T5/VHO lighting. There are several gorgeous colonies that can be found on some German reef keeping sites.
Location: Can be located based upon lighting but CAUTION is needed in placement because of the long stinging sweeper tentacles.
Current: This coral thrives in a medium to medium high current. Please be aware that the tentacles will be spreading with the current so placement is key.
Propagation: This coral can be propagated with care (for the corallite stalks) and the sweeper tentacles. It is recommend to cut the fused coral base with several stalks. Home aquarists also have removed the coral as it has grown to large and found that they have left a stalk or two behind that continues to grow.
So can you please post some pictures and experiences if you have them?
Thanks!
Sources:
Anthony Calfo’s book of Coral propogation
Several websites including aqua-web.org and ozreef.com
The picture is from aqua-web.
