Pavona Coral COTM Jan 09

Pavona Coral
Pavona decussatus sp
aka Cactus Coral, Lettuce Coral or Potato Chip coral

this is the very first pic of my Pavona when I received it.


How it currently looks, notice the taller section and the mass growing on the rocks


Coral Family- Agariciidae

Where does it originate? Indian Ocean

Hardiness & Description- Pavona Corals are in the classification of Small Polyp Stony or SPS. They come in Green and Tan and will sometimes fluoresce under actinic lighting. They are thought to be a moderately difficult coral to keep, however, I've never had a problem with mine. They have fine little hairs covering their skeletal plates, which will retract when they feel threatened.

Temp-76-79 degrees, consistency is the key to good any coral as they don't like temperature fluctuations.

Lighting-Moderate to High. I have mine under PC lighting, which in-turn, means I have to place it higher in the tank. If you have Metal Halides, you'll want to keep it lower. If you have T5 lighting then you would keep yours mid to high.

Water Flow & Quality-They like a med-strong water flow, just not to be blasted. Strong Intermittent flow is really good for them. The medium-strong flow lets their hairs flow freely, so they can capture food. You have to have consistently good water quality to keep a Pavona Coral happy and healthy. Making sure your tank's Calcium is steady and within 400-440, is a huge requirement for the Pavona Coral, as their skeleton is made up of calcium. They also benefit from (again..after testing to see if your tank is low) Strontium and Trace Elements. They, like other corals also enjoy water at the DKH level of between 8-12.

What they eat- They are filter feeders and they will eat dried baby brine shrimp and coral food. They are also said to enjoy Micro-plankton.

pH & Specific Gravity- As with most corals they prefer 8.1-8.4, with a S.G. of 1.023- 1.025.

Attitude towards tank mates- Pavona Corals are good tank mates as long as they are kept far enough from other corals, so their "hairs" don't touch other corals. They won't move around your tank. Their hairs will be out most of the day and retract a little after lights out.

Reproducing- I have broken it before, moving my rock. I re-glued the broken section to the same rock and it's growing just fine! Pavonas will reproduce their branches as "plates". You can also "Frag" a Pavona Coral by cutting off a branch or plate with a pair of bone cutters. You can however, break a piece off too and glue it onto a rock. After I glue the frag piece to a rock, I dip it into another bowl of tank water, to cool the glue, then into an iodine bath for a few minutes, then back into the tank.

Misc.- Not too much seems to bother my Pavona. My fish swim near it, but never through it. My clown doesn't host with it and I've never heard of one actually doing that behavior. My starfish and crabs climb over it from time to time and the little hairs will retract until whatever has crawled onto it has left. They will spread on rock and also grow upright and pretty big, from the pictures I've seen of them. So, make sure you have the room.



If I have forgotten to add anything, please, feel free to! I hope you've learned something and go getcha a Pavona Coral! They're a great all 'round coral, that will surely add a little character your tank!

 

Me likey! I had never even heard of those before...good post. Very informative.

 

thanks for the info

 

LOL yeah all in like 10 min each article and it didn't kill me.....would ya look at that LOL Thanks you all! yeah I like that badge!!!!!;D

 

wow, good job!!!! Your pavona looks very nice! I love them...I have one in my tank that is growing very nicely. It is actually ready for me to frag some bigger pieces off. Like you have broken many pieces of it off and it does very well

Here is about a 6 month old picture of mine...it is much bigger and hairer now!
102_1518.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Kudos!

 

Thanks!! very nice Pavona, Schackmel! That really has gotten bigger since the last pic I saw of it! Mine seems to be spreading a lot lately! They are an awesome coral!

 

Great Article Gras! One of my favorite corals, I have both,
this piece of the brown and a small piece of the green.



There is one thing I would like add to this, it is what I was
told when they were given to me, he said it was the secret
to keeping it "if it ain't fuzzy it ain't happy, move it till it is.
When it looks like it needs a shave then leave it alone.

 

Thanks Gazog! Very true about the fuzzy!!!!!! And don't you have a very pretty piece of Pavona there!!!

 

Very nice job!
Informative plus the fact that you gave some insight based on your own experience!
Nice coral, especially the green colored variety!