Tubastraea micranthus
| Tubastraea micranthus | ||||||||||||
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Tubastraea micrantha |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Tubastraea micranthus | ||||||||||||
| Ehrenberg , 1834 |
Tubastraea micranthus is a hard coral (Scleractinia)that livesin the coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific, mostly on the outer reef edge , in very strong currents at depths of less than 10 to 15 meters. It is also called Black Chalice Coral in German. Unlike most other hard corals, it does not livein symbiosis with zooxanthellae , so it is azooxanthelate . It feeds on catching plankton . The very voracious, large polyps can overwhelm quite large prey.
features
Tubastraea micranthus forms over one meter high, tree-shaped, richly branched coral stocks that are always perpendicular to the current. Their color is usually brown to black-brown, the crepuscular and nocturnal polyps are lighter in color, often fluorescent brown-green. Tubastraea micranthus is the only tropical, azooxanthelate hard coral that is reef building. It also grows between slowly growing zooxanthelate stony corals, but cannot withstand competition with the fast growing acropores . Tubastraea micranthus is very robust and often the last surviving hard coral in destroyed reefs.
Aquaristics
In the saltwater aquarium , the maintenance of all Tubastraeen is very difficult. Most imported colonies starve to death after a short time because they have no chance of getting food in an aquarium stocked with fish. Tubastraea micranthus is hardly imported.
literature
- Julian Sprung: Korallen , Dähne Verlag, 2000, ISBN 3-92168-487-0
- Hans A. Baensch / Robert A. Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volumes 2 + 5, Mergus-Verlag, Melle
- SA Fosså, & AJ Nilsen: Coral Reef Aquarium , Volume 4, Birgit Schmettkamp Verlag, Bornheim, ISBN 3928819054
- J. Sprung, JC Delbeek: Das Riffaquarium Volume 1, 1994, ISBN 1-883693-17-9