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Leptoseris coral

Leptoseris

Also known as Wrinkle Coral, Thin Plate Coral, Jack-O-Lantern Coral

SaltwaterCoral

Leptoseris coral (Leptoseris)
Benzoni, F. · CC BY 3.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–81°F
24–27°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Adult size
11.8 in
30 cm
Minimum tank
11 gal
40 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Solitary
Swim level
Bottom
Diet
Photosynthetic
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Medium
Rarity
Common
Reef safe
Reef safe
Family
Agariciidae
Origin
Indo-Pacific reefs, including Hawaii and the Red Sea, with most aquarium colonies collected from Fiji, Tonga, the Solomon Islands and the Great Barrier Reef

Overview

The Leptoseris coral is a small polyp stony coral, popular for its metallic, fine-lined color patterns and strong fluorescence. It is a step up from the easiest corals and needs a little reef experience.

Did you know

The Jack-O-Lantern color form of the Leptoseris coral has jet black flesh between glowing orange ridges. Its resemblance to a carved pumpkin is where that name comes from. This form is what put an otherwise obscure genus on the map in the reef hobby.

Caring for the Leptoseris coral

Give the Leptoseris coral low to moderate light, roughly 50 to 125 PAR. It is one of the few plating corals suited to a shaded spot that would bleach an Acropora. Set it on a sloped rock face or ledge with gentle to moderate flow.

Keep the water at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) and a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. It is mostly photosynthetic and does not need target feeding. It will still take up fine zooplankton, amino acids and the dissolved nutrients in fish waste.

Its sweeper tentacles reach out roughly an inch, enough to irritate anything encrusting right up against it. It is not a heavy stinger, but give it a little clearance and room to spread without being crowded.

Leptoseris frags easily if you cut the plate with a bandsaw or bone cutters. Gluing a thin fragment down takes a generous bead of gel superglue to hold well. It grows quickly for an encrusting stony coral, which is part of why it spreads across rock so readily.

Good to know

Leptoseris is a genus in the family Agariciidae, sometimes called the thin plate coral for its delicate, folded, laminar growth. It is also sold as the wrinkle coral. Some Leptoseris species hold the record for the deepest photosynthetic stony corals ever documented, collected as deep as 172 m. There they run on a tiny fraction of surface sunlight. Shops often stock and sell it alongside true chalice corals, even though it is not closely related to them.

In the wild

Leptoseris grows across Indo-Pacific reefs, including Hawaii and the Red Sea, where it forms thin, folded, encrusting plates over rock. Most aquarium colonies are collected from Fiji, Tonga, the Solomon Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Several species in the genus live in dim mesophotic water, far below where most stony corals survive.

Common questions

What size tank does a Leptoseris coral need?

A Leptoseris coral needs at least 11 gal (40 L).

What temperature and pH does a Leptoseris coral need?

A Leptoseris coral is comfortable at 75–81°F (24–27°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.

What does a Leptoseris coral eat?

A Leptoseris coral is mostly photosynthetic and needs no target feeding. It will take up fine zooplankton, amino acids and the dissolved nutrients in fish waste.

How big does a Leptoseris coral get?

An adult Leptoseris coral reaches about 11.8 in (30 cm).

Related species