Check out these Florida Hard Corals!

[Brandon McHenry]

Hello fellow reefers! I am a member of the Outreach and Engagement team at FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Ft. Pierce, FL. I recently got my Masters Degree at FAU HBOI and I now work to convey the research being done by the scientists and engineers at the Institute. One way that I am able to do this is by creating and maintaining live displays at our visitors center. As a long time hobbyist this was very exciting for me! I was particularly excited to be able to care for a variety of protected Caribbean hard corals in our Florida coral reef aquarium. As a fellow stick head I wanted to share with you all some of the SPS that are in this tank. Let me know what you think!

Acropora cervicornis (Florida Staghorn coral)

Oculina diffusa - a nearshore species found from Ft. Pierce to North Carolina

Porites asteroides (Mustard Hill Coral) both day and night

Acropora palmata (Florida Elkhorn coral) nighttime

Montastrea cavernosa (Great Star Coral) - I know its more of an LPS but its still really cool

For more details check out my build thread!
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/1...t-the-ocean-discovery-visitors-center.413700/

 

[29bonsaireef]

Very cool. These species would do A LOT better under T5 or MH, though

 

[jda]

Where is the A. Palmata? I hope that you have some too.

Since they are protected, don't jack around with some toy and get those under some sunlight or MH ASAP. You are not doing them any favors being under LED.

 

[TheHarold]

Very cool. These species would do A LOT better under T5 or MH, though

Where is the A. Palmatta? I hope that you have some too.

Since they are protected, don't jack around with some toy and get those under some sunlight or MH ASAP. You are not doing them any favors being under LED.

Why the LED hating? I thought that argument was dead for a while now, especially given that thousands of people are having success with them

Sure, the coral might need to acclimate to it. But there is no "proof" (like most things in reefing) that they would do better under MH/T5

 

[jda]

I think that you are only seeing what you want to see or seeing what you have been exposed to if you think that there is no proof. The corals that you are keeping have made it through a selection and die-off process from being handled and kept under LED. Not all wild corals will do well and many die that cannot make the transition. There is no argument to be made that LED is better for all corals, but it can be "just fine" for some of them that have been weeded out in captivity. These corals are protected and even some near threatened/endangered, so you don't jack around with these and just give them the best, or just leave them in the ocean. The only aquariums that I have seen that keep A. Palmata and the Caribbean version of A. Cervi (not to be confused with the pacific version) all have them under 1000w Halides and/or light tubes - I certainly have not been to all aquariums.

If you ever imported wild acro colonies (not mari which are chosen to do better), the die off rate is nearly nil when landed and raised under MH but can be more than 50% when under LED. They do best under 6500k Halides. Just because you have seen some posts about the stuff that "made it through" does not mean that it will translate to these specimens that have not been exposed to this stuff before.

If you could find one public aquarium biologist or curator that would agree with the assessment that there is not proof that these would do better under T5 or MH (I did not say anything about T5, BTW), then you could probably not find a second one. Thousands of people having success with a limited subsection of corals is not what everybody is after... and the assumption that what is good for the goose is good for the gander is irresponsible, as anybody's wife will tell them.

In any case, I want these to do well and make a comeback because I would like to be able to legally keep and grow A. Palmata one day... I am not too old, so I can always hope. Killing the ones that are able to be kept in captivity for any reason sets this back, so don't take any risks and get them under the best lighting.

 

[tehmadreefer]

Nice! I just put my boat in a marina over by you and ORA, will have to stop by for sure!!

 

[erk]

I think that you are only seeing what you want to see or seeing what you have been exposed to if you think that there is no proof. The corals that you are keeping have made it through a selection and die-off process from being handled and kept under LED. Not all wild corals will do well and many die that cannot make the transition. There is no argument to be made that LED is better for all corals, but it can be "just fine" for some of them that have been weeded out in captivity. These corals are protected and even some near threatened/endangered, so you don't jack around with these and just give them the best, or just leave them in the ocean. The only aquariums that I have seen that keep A. Palmata and the Caribbean version of A. Cervi (not to be confused with the pacific version) all have them under 1000w Halides and/or light tubes - I certainly have not been to all aquariums.

If you ever imported wild acro colonies (not mari which are chosen to do better), the die off rate is nearly nil when landed and raised under MH but can be more than 50% when under LED. They do best under 6500k Halides. Just because you have seen some posts about the stuff that "made it through" does not mean that it will translate to these specimens that have not been exposed to this stuff before.

If you could find one public aquarium biologist or curator that would agree with the assessment that there is not proof that these would do better under T5 or MH (I did not say anything about T5, BTW), then you could probably not find a second one. Thousands of people having success with a limited subsection of corals is not what everybody is after... and the assumption that what is good for the goose is good for the gander is irresponsible, as anybody's wife will tell them.

In any case, I want these to do well and make a comeback because I would like to be able to legally keep and grow A. Palmata one day... I am not too old, so I can always hope. Killing the ones that are able to be kept in captivity for any reason sets this back, so don't take any risks and get them under the best lighting.

If you look in the build thread, the acropora and many of these hard corals have been in this tank since at least November 2018. You can see them in the pics posted on that day. Could be far longer. So I don't think the LEDs are as bad as you think for this tank. I don't want to turn this into a debate over LED vs T5 vs MH, but the biggest reason LED systems fail is due to meddling. So many options and people tinker. Can't do that with T5 too much and even less with MH.

Let's enjoy this awesome Florida marine ecosystem aquarium. Really happy to see a system like this. Looks awesome.

 

[Brandon McHenry]

Wow I’m glad this has gotten so much interest already! I hope everyone will also take a minute to read about the research that our scientists are doing to understand the health of these amazing species and how we can work towards their protection! As for lights I will say that the Radions, which were contributed to us by Ecotech Marine, have been working really well for us so far and we have been getting significant growth on all of our corals. That being said I’ve always been a fan of T5/LED hybrid so that may be something I look into in the future but for now I’m very pleased with the success we’ve had!

Nice! I just put my boat in a marina over by you and ORA, will have to stop by for sure!!

You definitely should! The visitors center is open Tues-Sat from 10-4 and we give interpretive tours of the research exhibits. Plus we also have a new ORA tank that we just set up!

 

[29bonsaireef]

Why the LED hating? I thought that argument was dead for a while now, especially given that thousands of people are having success with them

Sure, the coral might need to acclimate to it. But there is no "proof" (like most things in reefing) that they would do better under MH/T5

Not hating.. it's just sad to see how little of this coral is left here in FL, and to pull some off the reef and keep it under LED just irks me out. A. Palmata used you be found scraping the surface of the ocean, same with A. Cervicornis. These are both high light demanding corals, full spectrum, intense (but quality) light and very good spread is needed. A. Cervicornis can grow a bit deeper, and receive less light then Palmata, but judging by the photos both species look unhappy.

Like mentioned above if these corals must be taken out of the ocean. They should be getting the best of the best, and most natural environment as possible, in captivity. One of the best tanks I've seen with these two species had multiple Solatubes and they were getting 1000-1100 par.

They are both really amazing corals and the only two true Acropora species we have on this side of the world. Hope the best for them.

 

[Brandon McHenry]

Not hating.. it's just sad to see how little of this coral is left here in FL, and to pull some off the reef and keep it under LED just irks me out. A. Palmata used you be found scraping the surface of the ocean, same with A. Cervicornis. These are both high light demanding corals, full spectrum, intense (but quality) light and very good spread is needed. A. Cervicornis can grow a bit deeper, and receive less light then Palmata, but judging by the photos both species look unhappy.

Like mentioned above if these corals must be taken out of the ocean. They should be getting the best of the best, and most natural environment as possible, in captivity. One of the best tanks I've seen with these two species had multiple Solatubes and they were getting 1000-1100 par.

They are both really amazing corals and the only two true Acropora species we have on this side of the world. Hope the best for them.

As a Floridian I can understand your concern about the status of our reefs. I would at least like to put your mind at ease and say these hard corals were not taken from the ocean for this display but were given to us by collaborators who have had their colonies in captivity for over a decade. These corals have been in our system for about 10 months now and have shown several inches of growth and have incredible polyp extension. As with every system that I keep, my goal is to create the best possible environment for all of the varied organisms that we house. Our researchers work on studying environmental stressors on corals and how they relate to the disease outbreaks that we have seen across Florida. This display has been invaluable in sharing this research and making the public aware of what a healthy coral reef ecosystem looks like.

 

[jda]

I agree that they look unhappy, but growing is something. I wish them the best too.

If you let me know how big the tank is, and an address, I will donate some Metal Halides and a Ranco. You certainly can give these things a better environment and these can help if your goal really is have the best possible.

For comparison, the pacific version of A. Cervi can grow from a 1" frag to the size of a watermelon in about 36 months in captivity under the best environment - softball size in less than a year. They are prolific and fast growers when made happy. Of course, I can only dream of having the Caribbean version and perhaps they are different.

 

[BobbyOtto]

Very cool. These species would do A LOT better under T5 or MH, though

I'd be interested to see if this is true. I get the shadowing issue with LEDs but I would like to see a study that proves those 2 light types outgrow LEDs. (just a side by side study with wattage and optimal equipment)

 

[29bonsaireef]

I am happy to hear that there has been some growth.

Having Radions to try and bring out coloration, or be able to toy with spectrum is one thing, but for corals that are relatively "bland" in color. Using the best high lighting source possible can really help with not only growth, but overall health which will give the corals a more natural structure and color. Then visitors can really see how amazing these two species are.

Above all I think it is awesome what you're trying to do. Hopefully these will continue to grow for you and you will have a fully packed FL system.

I'm sure you've seen this but here's what A. Cervicornis can grow like in a little over a years time, given the proper environment.

 

[Brandon McHenry]

While I appreciate all of the opinions, our corals are quite happy. These may not be the best pictures so I’ve attached a few more.

Our porites when we received it...

... our porites now, completely healed and fused together.

 

[EMeyer]

Yeah, I dont get the comments about unhappy corals. Your corals look great. These things are not supposed to look like WD or HW, folks, brown is their natural color

 

[honkit]

How sad it is to see a great thread devolve into a platform of some people promoting one form of lighting over another to suit their personal agendas. This is despite the TS stating that the corals are doing great in his tank under LEDs. Just lay off your personal lighting biasness and enjoy the corals for what they are worth.

 

[SashimiTurtle]

Looks great! Living in SC and visiting the coast often, I am always interested an any western Atlantic and Caribbean species of coral or fish.

 

[Brandon McHenry]

If you look in the build thread, the acropora and many of these hard corals have been in this tank since at least November 2018. You can see them in the pics posted on that day. Could be far longer. So I don't think the LEDs are as bad as you think for this tank. I don't want to turn this into a debate over LED vs T5 vs MH, but the biggest reason LED systems fail is due to meddling. So many options and people tinker. Can't do that with T5 too much and even less with MH.

Let's enjoy this awesome Florida marine ecosystem aquarium. Really happy to see a system like this. Looks awesome.

Yeah, I dont get the comments about unhappy corals. Your corals look great. These things are not supposed to look like WD or HW, folks, brown is their natural color

How sad it is to see a great thread devolve into a platform of some people promoting one form of lighting over another to suit their personal agendas. This is despite the TS stating that the corals are doing great in his tank under LEDs. Just lay off your personal lighting biasness and enjoy the corals for what they are worth.

Looks great! Living in SC and visiting the coast often, I am always interested an any western Atlantic and Caribbean species of coral or fish.

Thank you all so much for your kind words! I’m really glad that you are enjoying this for what it was meant to be, a showcase of a few lesser known but amazing coral species. It is my goal with all of my live displays to be able to show people the beauty of nature, from corals to seagrasses to sea sponges, and hope that they will learn to appreciate them and work towards their protection and recovery.

 

[Brandon McHenry]

Porites asteroides

Acropora cervicornis

Acropora palmata

 

[VR28man]

For comparison, the pacific version of A. Cervi can grow from a 1" frag to the size of a watermelon in about 36 months in captivity under the best environment - softball size in less than a year. They are prolific and fast growers when made happy. Of course, I can only dream of having the Caribbean version and perhaps they are different.

Just out of curiosity, what do you consider the Pacific equivalent? There’s lots of staghorn acros, but it seems to me the one that’s most similar is A yongei, one color which is available as the green slimer.