Carnation coral
Dendronephthya
Also known as Tree Coral, Cauliflower Coral, Ledge Coral, Carnation Tree Coral
SaltwaterCoral
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 75–81°F
- 24–27°C
- pH
- 8.1–8.4
- Adult size
- 9.8 in
- 25 cm
- Minimum tank
- 20 gal
- 75 L
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Social behavior
- Solitary
- Swim level
- Bottom
- Diet
- Filter feeder
- Difficulty
- Difficult
- Breeding
- Hard
- Rarity
- Rare
- Reef safe
- Reef safe
- Family
- Nephtheidae
- Origin
- Indo-Pacific reefs, on current-swept slopes, walls and overhangs, often in deeper or shaded water
Overview
The carnation coral is one of the hardest corals in the hobby to keep alive long term. It is not fragile in the usual sense, but its feeding needs make it a coral for experienced keepers.
Did you know
The carnation coral's reds, pinks and oranges come entirely from pigment and calcite sclerites, not from symbiotic algae.
Caring for the carnation coral
The carnation coral has no real light requirement, and it often does better tucked into a dim cave than under bright aquarium lighting. Place it low in the tank, in a shaded spot. Aim strong, turbulent, food-laden flow across its branches.
Keep the water at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) with a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. It needs a near constant supply of very fine planktonic food, ideally several feedings a day aimed into strong flow. Every polyp is an obligate filter feeder that must catch phytoplankton, bacterioplankton and fine zooplankton from the water. Without that level of feeding it slowly wastes away over weeks, even if it looks fine at first.
The carnation coral does not sting or compete with other corals, and it is reef safe. That feeding schedule is more than most reef systems are set up to sustain. Keep it only in a dedicated, mature NPS system run by an experienced feeder, not in a general reef tank. Breeding it is hard.
Good to know
The carnation coral, Dendronephthya, is a non-photosynthetic soft coral in the family Nephtheidae. It carries no zooxanthellae, so it makes none of its own energy from light. Calcite sclerites stiffen its branching stalks in place of a hard skeleton.
In the wild
The carnation coral lives on current-swept reef slopes, walls and overhangs across the Indo-Pacific, often in deeper or shaded water. Wild colonies form soft branching trees in pink, red, orange and yellow. They inflate with water and open into a mass of feeding polyps whenever plankton-rich current sweeps past. When the water goes still, they deflate into a limp lump.
Common questions
What size tank does a carnation coral need?
A carnation coral needs at least 20 gal (75 L).
What temperature and pH does a carnation coral need?
A carnation coral is comfortable at 75–81°F (24–27°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.
What does a carnation coral eat?
A carnation coral needs a near constant supply of very fine planktonic food. Its polyps filter phytoplankton, bacterioplankton and fine zooplankton from the water, ideally fed several times a day into strong flow.
How big does a carnation coral get?
An adult carnation coral reaches about 9.8 in (25 cm).
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