Description
Galxea corals are found all over the Indo-Pacific growing in large fields. Although, the frags sold here are aquacultured by ORA. These corals are grown in aquariums and then fragged to be sold to hobbyists such as yourself instead of being collected from the ocean. Later, we’ll go over the benefits of aquacultured corals. Galaxea is a hardy and easy to keep coral, but there are a few key things you need to consider when caring for this coral. Let’s start with the most well known aspect of this coral: it is extremely aggressive. Galaxea is one of the most aggressive corals, meaning it has brutal sweeper tentacles that extend out a night to attack other corals. This is done to open up more “real estate” for future growth. This coral is going to win most of the fights it picks, if not all of them. For this reason, you need to provide lots of room between this coral and others. Galaxea is often isolated from other corals with its own section of the tank. This isn’t a good coral for nano aquariums or aquariums under 50 gallons unless you only want one coral species. However, it looks amazing in larger aquariums 50 gallons and up. What about lighting? Galaxea prefers medium lighting. Lighting that is too high will cause bleaching, though lower light will be tolerated. If you have to choose between low and high light, always go with lower light for this coral. Even when providing medium light, you should err on the lower end. Ideally, this coral should be placed under 50-100 micromoles of PAR, but even lower light is okay. Things are middle of the road for flow as well. You should provide a moderate amount of indirect, random water flow. If the coral looks retracted or sucked in, this might be a sign of too much water flow. You should see the polyps and tentacles gently swaying if you are providing the right amount of water movement. Being a stony coral, Galaxea also requires at least decently stable levels of calcium, alkalinity, and magnesium. Large enough fluctuations will be detrimental for this coral, so keep your base elements as stable as possible. Keep your nitrates around 1-5 ppm and your phosphates as close to 0.01 ppm as possible but not 0. The temperature should be between 72-78 degrees Fahrenheit and stable. Lastly, let’s discuss feeding. Galaxea gets most of its nutritional needs from a photosynthetic algae called zooxanthellae within it, though it can benefit from feeding. Make sure the food particle size is small enough for the polyps to consume and spot feed with the pumps off. Don’t over do it either, otherwise you risk nutrient spikes. Alternatively, you can feed phytoplankton if you want something that won’t cause high nutrient levels.
Care requirements
Purchase Size: 1″
Placement: Bottom to middle.
Lighting: Low to medium.
Flow: Moderate.
Parameters: 72-78° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, salinity 32-35 ppt
Calcium: 350-450 ppm
Alkalinity: 8-12 dKH
Magnesium: 1,250-1,350 ppm
More Information
Aquacultured corals such as this Metallic Green Galaxea from ORA are better adapted to aquarium conditions such as lighting, flow, and water chemistry. They are also overall hardier than corals collected from the ocean. Because of this, these corals are much more likely to survive and do well in your aquarium. They are also far less likely to carry pests and disease, though you should still dip and/or quarantine them to be safe. On top of all that, aquacultured corals are more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Keep your aquarium free of pests and do your part to decrease the impact our hobby has on the ocean by choosing aquacultured corals!
