Pocillopora corals are productive reef builders in the wildYou may not be aware, but Pocillopora, despite being among the less popular stony corals in the reef aquarium hobby, are second only to Acropora in reef-building productivity in the wild. Their skeletons make up a huge portion of the reef’s structure in the ocean. Pocillopora are also among the most adaptable SPS corals in that they tolerate a wide range of both light and flow. At Tidal Gardens, we grow them under medium light and medium flow, but they do develop better coloration under stronger light. If you want to experiment with stronger light, be sure to acclimate the coral slowly to the light because it is possible to burn them if done too hastily.The other aspect that makes Pocillopora highly effective reef-building corals is their growth rate. They are among the fastest-growing stony corals and have a trick up their sleeve if things go downhill—they can reproduce asexually by means of “polyp bailout,” where each polyp can detach from its skeleton and drift to a new location to colonize. While this technique is not unique to Pocillopora, these corals do it far more effectively than others. A closeup of Pocillopora coral polyps Usually polyp bailout is employed as a last-ditch effort in response to something going wrong.
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