Zoanthids. Love them or love them, these stunning little colonial polyps are often the first “coral” any of us keep and for good reason. They come in a dazzling variety of colors and patterns, many if not most of them are quite hardy and some are even spread quickly. They can be propagated relatively easily, and many are incredibly tolerant of less-than-ideal conditions. Recently, here at Quality Marine, we've added a whole slew of amazing new varieties.
If you notice your Zoas turning brown or green in bright lighting, they likely came from very deep water where the light supply is limited (or were cultured in a lower light environment) as a result, these polyps are almost entirely dependent on feeding. Even the Zoanthids that crave bright light will do best and grow / reproduce faster with supplemental foods; they do not need much, and it should be very small in size. Feeding weekly, or at most twice a week is plenty. In house, we feed a blend of the live algae products from Nutramar, and / or frozen options like Gamma Copepods which are all natural food sources, and we've realized excellent growth rates and enhanced coloration using them with all our Zoanthids. Any type of food you choose can be directly (but gently) fed with a baster with your flow turned off or at least way down. All frozen foods should be thawed and brought up to aquarium temperature before feeding. Click here to learn more
If you notice your Zoas turning brown or green in bright lighting, they likely came from very deep water where the light supply is limited (or were cultured in a lower light environment) as a result, these polyps are almost entirely dependent on feeding. Even the Zoanthids that crave bright light will do best and grow / reproduce faster with supplemental foods; they do not need much, and it should be very small in size. Feeding weekly, or at most twice a week is plenty. In house, we feed a blend of the live algae products from Nutramar, and / or frozen options like Gamma Copepods which are all natural food sources, and we've realized excellent growth rates and enhanced coloration using them with all our Zoanthids. Any type of food you choose can be directly (but gently) fed with a baster with your flow turned off or at least way down. All frozen foods should be thawed and brought up to aquarium temperature before feeding. Click here to learn more
