"deepwater" acro requirements

[jmaneyapanda]

I have a question about some of your Divers Den Corals. I note that some have the denotation "deepwater" in their names. However, the site states that the corals are kept under rather intense lighting (400 watt 20K). What are the requierements of some of these corals? Being they bear the name "Deepwater", is this just a descrition of their typical locale, or an indication of certain husbandry requirements. Thanks in advance.

 

[dfs/la2]

Jmaneyapanda,

Thank you for contacting us with your question. We apologize this would be a question for the Director of our Aquaculture Coral and Marine Life Facility but he is not in until Monday. We will contact him and repost as soon as we have an answer.

If you have any further questions please contact us at 1-800-334-3699.

Stacie R
Technical Support
Drs Foster and Smith

 

[DFS]

Jeremy,

As a general rule, most of the Acropora spp. in the trade that are coined "deepwater" to refer to the structure of the coral more than the actual depth they are harvested from. Deepwater Acropora branches look smoother, and normally have very few radial corallites. Most of these species can be found at varying depths, but they are normally not found on the reef crest in extremely intense light. Some examples include Acropora suharsonoi, Acropora lokani, and Acropora multiacuta. We normally try and provide these species with strong lighting, but not directly under an intense halide lamp.

With any Acropora spp, I would slowly adjust new arrivals to the lighting conditions on your aquarium by starting them off at the bottom or in the corners of the aquarium and slowly move them into their final position in your display over time.

Regards,
Kevin Kohen
Director of LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[jmaneyapanda]

Dear Kevin:

Thanks for the reply. I suspected this was more a nomenclature issue rather than husbandry issue, but I thought I would ask to be sure. I appreciate the reply.