Greetings
FISHY7 - I, too, have heard that Xenia doesn't ship well, but I have also heard the opposite. I only have one personal experience with shipping it, but had no problems. There were a few small chunks of carbon in the bag, although I don't know if that made any significant difference. I wonder if the "Xenia doesn't ship well" theory is more urban legend than truth
. The commercial sites seem to be able to sell and ship it and it doesn't seem to be too difficult to make it thrive...
BILLY73 - From my personal experience (I'm certainly not an expert), Anthelia is far harder to control than Xenia. Xenia spreads, but it is through stalk formation, which is predictable. Essentially, it will "stretch" and attach to neighboring rocks and then split into a new colony. I have scrubbed Xenia from rocks where it wasn't wanted and was able to effectively remove it. There was some re-growth, but it was minor. Seems like the best bet is to frag it as it naturally forms new stalks.
Portions of Anthelia, however, will separate from the colony, float around the tank and then attach wherever it feels comfortable. Sometimes this is because it has been "bumped" loose or from the water current dislodging it. I have literally scrubbed it from rocks only to have it come back just as strong. I have even seen it float into my overflow chamber, through the plumbing and into the sump; surviving, even thought there is very little light available. The absolute definition of "hardy". Too bad it doesn't come in colors other than brown
Take Care
