Black Sun Coral question

[cfredallen]

I picked up a montipora the other day and found 5 sun coral polyps on the rock it is growing on. I have heard these are hard to keep. Is there anything special I should do? Can they be trained to feed during daylight?

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[fengxzhang]

In an SPS tank, they are not hard to keep. I have train mine to come out during the day by feeding it daily with some mysis.

 

[cfredallen]

This is in a mixed reef. Been running about 18 months. All LPS and SPS so far doing great.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Shells4]

I have had mine for over 1 1/2 years with no problem. I have high nitrates and it doesn't seem to bother them a bit. I have low lights at the moment but the do stay open most of the day. I even had baby black suncorals popping up around my tank for a few months. Personal, I think they are pretty easy to keep.

 

[cfredallen]

Thanks for all the replies. I checked them after lights out and the polyps are beautiful. Every bit as black as the outer shell. will start trying to get them to open in daytime for easier target feeding.

Thanks again

 

[The J Man]

A friend of mine had his in a very low flow area with no flow and they almost kicked it. He moved em into an area of moderate flow and they began to come out at feeding time

His tank was high nutrient SPS and LPS.

 

[jasin401]

i put a cap frag over mine, blocks the light! and its open during the day also

 

[achillesmf]

I found the black suns the hardest NPS I kept, they need loads of food.

 

[EllieSuz]

Make a DIY feeder tube so you can directly feed each polyp. Pick up a syringe such as the ones for medicating infants and attach it to a length of rigid airline tube with a short piece of soft airline tube. Here's a picture:

I also put a half inch of soft tubing on the other end, so it's easier on the coral. Draw defrosted frozen food of your choosing into the syringe and feed your corals. I use this feeder to feed Hammer, Frogspawn, Bubble and Torch corals also. My Sun is not black, but it's very healthy as evidenced by this next picture:

 

[slapshot]

You just have to feed them often. More often then the other Suns.

 

[Zeyko]

I can just feed sun coral once weekly?

 

[EllieSuz]

I would think once weekly would be too infrequently. I feed mine daily, but perhaps every other day would suffice.

 

[daddy2kids]

I feed my suncorals 2-3 times per week and they do great. Also, I see a new head from time to time (from which I infer they are getting enough food). I agree with EllieSuz--weekly does not seem often enough.

My black sun coral is in an alcove providing shade from the overhad lights and all heads are often open during the day for feedings. My yellow sun coral is not quite as shaded and will often open only after my 10K T5HO's turn off--sometimes they wait until the actinics also turn off.

 

[aussiedan]

My findings with the black suns is that they need moderator to high flow, in areas of lower flow they tend not to extend regularly and not eat as well as a result. Mine has much better extension now I have moved it away from the rockwork and into the flow of the vortech