In an effort to reduce a cluttered thread of various coral pictures I decided to start separate threads for particular subject matter. The topic I have at hand today is the amazing Mirulinidae coral genuses of Echinophyllia, Echinopora, Echinomorpha, Mycedium, Oxypora, Pectinia, Ect. I like the idea of having something to reference the coloration changes and growth patterns of various chalice corals over time. So I will be posting images of different specimens, some of the same genetic lineage but in different systems and some that are simply updates of a coral cutting but over a period of time.
We feed the corals once to twice a week and all of these corals get a mix of various foods including, but not limited too, cyclopeeze, brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, coral gumbo, reef chili, and reef roids.
These scleractinia, as with most LPS Stony corals, prefer a consistent
calcium of around 400-500
and alkalinity level of between 7-10.
Mag as usual should be in ratio with your calcium at around 1100-1600
Many of these corals are tolerant of some nitrates .008-20PPM
as well as slowly made temperature adjustments from 72F-82F.
I would say that many of these Chalice corals are not appreciative of high light or flow but there are some exceptions to this rule. As a rule of thumb I like to try out my chalices very low in the tank and move them up very slowly over time to allow for sufficient adjustment to the PAR levels of your lighting. Once you light "burn" a chalice it may take months to recover or instead it may just simply bleach, get infected, and perish...So take it slow.
If you have questions regarding the corals presented in the thread you can ask me, I don't mind a Private Message now and then.
Well then, lets get this started shall we? The first Chalice Coral up is
Chalice # 1
OG Alien Eye Chalice
Here is an in tank specimen with flash on. As you can see it generally takes on the standard plating shape. This one has medium sized mouths or "eye"s and does not mound up as much as some of the other chalices can. Tends to not have as long sweepers either but is a powerful contender when contact with another corals is made.
Here is a picture taken outside under the full sun, gorgeous blue, grays, and green are vividly present.
Same coral under actinics, this thing looks like it is radioactive and is going to burn through the Tupperware.
This picture gives a "shining" example of the sheen than can be obtained in this coral provided it is healthy and shaded from direct bright lighting. Like many of its brother and sister chalices it does not like much light or flow.
The original mother of this colony is well over 12 years old and came from MVP aquatics before they closed their doors so this one has been around a while.
Next Up Chalice # 2
JNS Cotton Candy
In this close up you can see some of the very small eyes and its almost "Oozing" growth structure.
This piece shows the more plastic formation taken on under different lighting and flow patterns.
Much like the previous chalice when this one is under good conditions and lower lighting it will develop a green under sheen to the flesh wich is most exquisite, something that looks better in person than camera as it is almost translucent.
A side note about this coral is that similar to the Alien Eye or Water Mellon there are a number of chalices with the name Cotton Candy each with their own name brand attached. I wish they simply went a little more unique with the name, but as we all know there is no rule book on the old name game.
Chalice # 3
Crimson Tide
Bluish green base with bright red freckled peaks on the face of these coral with nice Orangish red little eyes across the surface. A very slow grower this one is, this little piece is about a year old.
Even the little feeder/sweeper tentacles are a transparent orangish color wich is very cool, some intense color contrasting going on here.
Here is a little frag side profile shot demonstrating the shorter reach these guys have unlike some of the other Echinoporas out there. I have seen "stunners" with quite a bit more reach to them resulting in a bit more real estate taken up by those other chalices.
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