The Elegant Moon Polyp Corals are also referred to as Button Polyps, Moon Polyps, Encrusting Anemones, or Sea Mats. They are brown with radiating stripes. They are a colonial animal with several individual polyps attached to a piece of live rock.
Their polyps have the ability to sting other polyps or corals and they are semi-aggressive. They need to have space between their colony and any neighbors. They require a high light level combined with a strong water movement within the aquarium. For continued good health, they will also require the addition of iodine and other trace elements to the water.
They will reproduce easily in the reef aquarium by budding (splitting off a portion of their base or mouth), which will increase the size of their colony. Allow adequate space for their colony to grow, as they will spread out if continually provided adequate water quality parameters.
They contain the symbiotic algae zooxanthellae from which they receive some of their nutritional requirements. They also benefit from weekly feedings of micro-plankton or brine shrimp given to each individual of the colony.
Approximate Purchase Size: Small: 2" to 3"; Medium: 3" to 5"; Large: 5" to 7"
Testimonial By:
Testimonial:
Dean White Bradford, VT
These polyps do very well in the reef aquarium kept in a high flow, moderate light environment. The individual colonies don't grow large, but will spread rather rapidly. Care should be taken not to let them be overgrown by algae, nor to let them crowd out other species.
