Help with Pavona

[Fish_Kid99]

I want to get an orange pavona coral and i wanted to check with RC crew to see how it will fare in my 55 gallon tank.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

your sig tag line says you're in the rock curing stage..............

 

[Fish_Kid99]

oops sorry about that. I am actually about a month into having my tank stocked. I started my cyclying in January. I just forgot to change that lol.

 

[Fish_Kid99]

Anybody ever kept a pavona? How long did it last? How big was it?

 

[buk]

my orange pavona didn't do so hot it's first few weeks in my tank. but now is doing great and craves flow and light. the more flow i put to is the brighter it gets

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

I would not rate Pavona maldivensis a beginner's coral.
My suggestion:
If you're set upon it, start with a small inexpensive frag.

Water motion around the coral appears to be critical... intense lighting not so much as critical. This doesn't mean blast the coral directly with a powerhead.
Research and set up a good gyre flow.

 

[Fish_Kid99]

Ok thats good to know. I had found the perfect spot that had some flow and lots of light, but seeing how thats the opposite of what it needs I will need to find another place to put it (I just need to order it first).

 

[tmz]

I keep several pavaona maldevensis ( two orange and one green)and a couple of other types. The maldevensis are the touchiest of the bunch. They like moderate to low light ,moderate flow and good water quality with steady parameters. They can be very touchy to being moved about and sometimes fare poorly in shipping.

 

[Fish_Kid99]

Ok thank you. I was planning on getting an orange one to start and then a green one. Still wishing they had a blue one though....

 

[Ptyochromis]

I have found mine do best in low light high flow. Not an easy coral IME. Although it did survive an RTN episode that killed all but my pavonas, 1 montipora digitata, and a colony of zoanthids.

 

[williewilliams]

Its pretty easy. I have one, blue/green, it grows fast under high flow and stays pretty tight. All right in high light but like most LPS it rather be in a low to med light local. It will shoot out long sweepers so try to keep so distance from other corals. IMO, a good starter coral/ pre-sps, to get your feet wet.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Pavona maldivensis does not have sweepers like other Pavona species.... and it's DEFINITELY not as "easy" as other Pavona.
Got a pic of your maldivensis, willie?

Here is the Pavona species being discussed

Pavona maldivensis (orange) is growing nicely

 

[Fish_Kid99]

Thank all of you for the input. It has really helped me out. If I hadn't have asked this I probably would have killed it with to much light and not enough flow.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

P. maldivensis is DEFINITELY not a beginner's coral.

I had a green one right next to my orange and the green crapped the bed over a two year time period. I still don't know why.

Very important lesson:
This thread is a good example why it is a good thing to discuss SPECIFIC SPECIES whenever possible. I can grow "easy" Pavona species under fluorescent lighting. The more common Pavona species might be considered a nuisance by some in many SPS aquariums.
Not so with P. maldivensis!

Oh... another thing and I'm surprised nobody has yet posted this: Pavona spp. might be called LPS or SPS.
It really doesn't matter as these are fairly useless hobbyist nicknames. Always use the scientific name whenever possible and save yourself grief!

GOOD LUCK

 

[Ptyochromis]

Never seen any of my pavonas extent sweepers more than a few mm.

 

[Fish_Kid99]

On LA there is a "sunburst" and "screaming green". The pic up top shows its almost yellow while the description on LA says that they are bright green and orange. Is this species difference, lighting difference, or something else entirely?

 

[williewilliams]

Yeah, thats different then mine. I'm not to keen on all the sciencie names. I left my lab coat at home before I go to my junk yard. Sorry for the crummy advice.

 

[williewilliams]

This is what mine is. Totally different, but still a pavona.

 

[Ptyochromis]

My pavonas
Freebee from the LFS: http://i.imgur.com/YbmD8.jpg

My other one: http://i.imgur.com/o6MZd.jpg

 

[Fish_Kid99]

Ok thank all of you for everything. This will really help me keep a pavona alive and thriving.