How to love your Lobo: Tips for success with Lobophyllia
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Just found out it inflates at night, tucks up at day.
Flashlight photo after tank lights have been of all night. Tissue inflated, feeders out... I'm pretty sure this is a wild piece. It's not used to inflating during the day.
After tank lights come on.
The only thing I know to do is keep feeding during the day. If it's inflating at night and putting out feeders, it's healthy. It is just accustomed that if it inflates during the day, it gets eaten by a fish. Hopefully they will turn around for both of us and inflate during the day.
cajunreef985
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I just purchased my first lobo and i must admit its the life of my tank now! just beautiful and is happy accepting food and all already! (reefroids) do i need to feed everyday? i usually feed roids once a week and fish every 2 days. (brine) which schedule should I put the lobo on?
nick0206
Active Member
Hello.
5 months ago I bought this 3-color lobophyllia.
Literally after 3 months, the blue color changed to purple, orange, as well as green is almost invisible.
Any thoughts why this is so?
What do you advise?
respectfully
Nick
5 months ago I bought this 3-color lobophyllia.
Literally after 3 months, the blue color changed to purple, orange, as well as green is almost invisible.
Any thoughts why this is so?
What do you advise?
respectfully
Nick
I think light spectrum and intensity have a lot to do with how a coral will look as well as cause them to change color.Hello.
5 months ago I bought this 3-color lobophyllia.
Literally after 3 months, the blue color changed to purple, orange, as well as green is almost invisible.
Any thoughts why this is so?
What do you advise?
respectfully
Nick
MCatano
Valuable Member
Great info. Thank youHow to love your Lobo: Tips for success with Lobophyllia
Hi Everyone,
Have you ever kept a Lobophyllia? These are great "LPS" corals with terrific color patterns and shapes that look great in reefs! If you're like a lot of reefers, you may have kept one before, and either had moderate success, or perhaps had a bad experience. Was thinking about this the other day, because we work with a lot of Lobos, and seem to enjoy much success with them, as do most of our customers who purchase them. it made me think about what the keys to success are with Lobos. I decided to offer a little bit of our learned experience here, in the hope that it will spur other Lobo lovers to share their success stories!
Source: Like many corals, it all starts with where the coral was selected, and how it was handled after collection, during shipping, and at the dealer. I would have to state that, categorically, the most successful Lobos in captivity are generally those which come from Australia.I'm not beating down other sources...We obtain Lobos from other countries that do very well, but the quality just isn't quite what it is with Aussie stuff. Let's face it: The Aussies do it better! These corals are collected with care...you can just tell, particularly by observing how the animal was removed from it's surrounding substrate, or how the surrounding rock was taken off. It's obvious that the Aussie ones are carefully removed from the reef and substrate. They are also subject to quotas and accountability, so these relatively modest-growing corals are not randomly whacked off of natural reefs, to the detriment of the surrounding ecosystem.
Once collected, most Aussie outfits pack them well, to assure that they are not banged around and damaged during shipping. And, in fact, in my opinion/experience, shipping is where a lot of damage occurs with these corals. Once the tissue is damaged, the coral is stressed and potentially vulnerable to a number of maladies, ranging from bacterial infections to predation by fishes and inverts. Seems like the resident fishes and crabs can literally "hear the dinner bell" (an old and accurate Anthony Calfo quote!) when one of these guys is damaged, and they'll happily chow down on the coral, finishing the job.
So it's of paramount importance that you obtain a specimen that is undamaged to begin with. This will give it a much greater chance of success. Also, I highly recommend a mild coral dip for about 3 minutes on arrival, which will disinfect the coral and hopefully rid it of any unwanted hitchhikers that may damage the coral or its neighbors.
Placement: Thee corals are found in a variety of environments, but seem to be most common in lagoonal or back reef areas. They are not getting blasted by waves, and typically do not do well when subjected to strong laminar flow from a powerhead or pump. They categorically do better in more randomized. moderate to strong water movement. Place them in an area of your reef structure where they can expand and contract without excessively abrading their tissues, rendering them susceptible to infection as touched on above. if the animal comes in on a small rock, you would be wise simply placing the rock on the sand in an area where the coral can grow. Also, place the Lobo far enough from neighboring corals so as to avoid any allelopathic issues or coral aggression.
Environment: Like many corals, stable alkalinity (around 8-10DKH) seems to be a big help in keeping them happy and colorful. These guys don't seem to tolerate wildly fluctuating parameters well, which is a bit surprising to me, because I'd imagine that lagoon corals are more tolerant of such fluctuations...But not in my experience. They will definitely let you know when they are not happy. Also, keep them in temps on the lower side of your "reef acceptable" temp range (like 76-77F). In my experience, these corals are among the first to fade when temps get out of hand, so think about this when entertaining the thought of keeping one.
Feeding: Yes, these are hungry corals, and really should be fed a couple of times a week. They demonstrate a strong feeding response and are pretty easy to feed. Use small, meaty marine-based foods, such as Cycolp-eez, Oyster Eggs, or finely mined seafood and Mysis. Gently squirt food in the direction of the corals' mouth, taking care not to blast full-bore into the coral. It goes without saying that you should shut off the flow while target feeding. If you have aggressive hermit crabs, shrimp, or Dwarf Angels, they can be a bit of a pain when target feeding these corals, so keep this in mind. I have personally tried the old trick of removing the specimen from the tank and placing it in a container of tank water while "marinating it" in food for 15-20 mins, so the coral can feed uninterrupted. Although excessive handling of this coral is not the best thing in the world, neither is having tons of shrimp and corals picking at the coral while it's attempting to feed!
Etc.: These are very cool corals, and can do quite well if you follow a few basic tips on their care. Don't be afraid to try one, but make surethat you are up to keeping one. Unlike say, Acros, they are not a "set and forget" coral. They require some active participation on your part in order to make sure that their needs are met. They are most "communicative", and will show you very clearly when they are not happy! Dont fear them, however, as they are colorful, interesting, and rewarding to keep!
In the interest of us all becoming better reefers, please share your tips, experiences, and thoughts on these beautiful corals here, so that we can all learn! This was the most cursory of dialogues about them; let's build on the body of knowledge available, so that more reefers can benefit from the experiences of our peers!
Thanks for stopping by!
Stay Wet
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
Saltyanimals
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Hello.
5 months ago I bought this 3-color lobophyllia.
Literally after 3 months, the blue color changed to purple, orange, as well as green is almost invisible.
Any thoughts why this is so?
What do you advise?
respectfully
Nick
I have a very similar experience with one almost identical to your colors. Now almost a purple and orange/red. Had it for over a year now and looks healthy and happy otherwise. Feeds aggressively at nights. I reef roid once or twice a week. Fairly large piece sitting on a rock shelf and higher light due to sps above it.
nick0206
Active Member
My Lobophyllia with the transition to Korallen-Zucht began to look healthier than before.
Since I am still in the transition stage and the system is not completely stable, the phosphate level is quite high (it was 0.16, now it is about 0.06), I temporarily, for 3 months now, have not been feeding my corals with reef roids.
If earlier it did not look very healthy, ribs protruded through the body of the coral and it was a purple hue, now there is a bluish blue and even an orange hue in the very corner.
Coral shows a tendency towards recovery.
I add Amino LPS every 2 days.
Recently, a friend of mine, the owner of LFS, received 2 dying Scolimia from one person. Both had 30 percent of the body, the rest of the skeleton. When I visited the LFS again after 2 weeks, the corals looked great, the body practically regenerated.
When asked how, I received the answer - three times a day dosage of amino LPS without feeding.
Saltyanimals
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I tend to do both. Amino is on a daily doser (6ml) on a 65G tank. Reef roid maybe 1-2 week on a good week. Lobo is always hungry with feeders out nightly hence I auto amino in the night 3am.
The core question I keep asking myself is how typical are these color morphs. I've seen some really colorful lobos, but ask myself what's the point to grow out if they default back to the common purple/blue and red when they mature. I'm sure it's light related which I'm on G3s but I am running SPS colors so not the windex on some softie tanks.
Here's my lobo. It really is purple and red under normal lights. Greens in the center of the heads are basically gone, but then again it's so puffy that I can't see much of the center anyways. I could windex the lights and get something else, but trying to be realistic on the actual lobo.
Anyone have a mature lobo that is still "rainbow" to share a pic?
The core question I keep asking myself is how typical are these color morphs. I've seen some really colorful lobos, but ask myself what's the point to grow out if they default back to the common purple/blue and red when they mature. I'm sure it's light related which I'm on G3s but I am running SPS colors so not the windex on some softie tanks.
Here's my lobo. It really is purple and red under normal lights. Greens in the center of the heads are basically gone, but then again it's so puffy that I can't see much of the center anyways. I could windex the lights and get something else, but trying to be realistic on the actual lobo.
Anyone have a mature lobo that is still "rainbow" to share a pic?
Sleeping Giant
Proud Canadian Reefer
Great read, thanks for the tips, I'm pondering the idea of getting one, and this is exactly the info I was looking for.How to love your Lobo: Tips for success with Lobophyllia
Hi Everyone,
Have you ever kept a Lobophyllia? These are great "LPS" corals with terrific color patterns and shapes that look great in reefs! If you're like a lot of reefers, you may have kept one before, and either had moderate success, or perhaps had a bad experience. Was thinking about this the other day, because we work with a lot of Lobos, and seem to enjoy much success with them, as do most of our customers who purchase them. it made me think about what the keys to success are with Lobos. I decided to offer a little bit of our learned experience here, in the hope that it will spur other Lobo lovers to share their success stories!
Source: Like many corals, it all starts with where the coral was selected, and how it was handled after collection, during shipping, and at the dealer. I would have to state that, categorically, the most successful Lobos in captivity are generally those which come from Australia.I'm not beating down other sources...We obtain Lobos from other countries that do very well, but the quality just isn't quite what it is with Aussie stuff. Let's face it: The Aussies do it better! These corals are collected with care...you can just tell, particularly by observing how the animal was removed from it's surrounding substrate, or how the surrounding rock was taken off. It's obvious that the Aussie ones are carefully removed from the reef and substrate. They are also subject to quotas and accountability, so these relatively modest-growing corals are not randomly whacked off of natural reefs, to the detriment of the surrounding ecosystem.
Once collected, most Aussie outfits pack them well, to assure that they are not banged around and damaged during shipping. And, in fact, in my opinion/experience, shipping is where a lot of damage occurs with these corals. Once the tissue is damaged, the coral is stressed and potentially vulnerable to a number of maladies, ranging from bacterial infections to predation by fishes and inverts. Seems like the resident fishes and crabs can literally "hear the dinner bell" (an old and accurate Anthony Calfo quote!) when one of these guys is damaged, and they'll happily chow down on the coral, finishing the job.
So it's of paramount importance that you obtain a specimen that is undamaged to begin with. This will give it a much greater chance of success. Also, I highly recommend a mild coral dip for about 3 minutes on arrival, which will disinfect the coral and hopefully rid it of any unwanted hitchhikers that may damage the coral or its neighbors.
Placement: Thee corals are found in a variety of environments, but seem to be most common in lagoonal or back reef areas. They are not getting blasted by waves, and typically do not do well when subjected to strong laminar flow from a powerhead or pump. They categorically do better in more randomized. moderate to strong water movement. Place them in an area of your reef structure where they can expand and contract without excessively abrading their tissues, rendering them susceptible to infection as touched on above. if the animal comes in on a small rock, you would be wise simply placing the rock on the sand in an area where the coral can grow. Also, place the Lobo far enough from neighboring corals so as to avoid any allelopathic issues or coral aggression.
Environment: Like many corals, stable alkalinity (around 8-10DKH) seems to be a big help in keeping them happy and colorful. These guys don't seem to tolerate wildly fluctuating parameters well, which is a bit surprising to me, because I'd imagine that lagoon corals are more tolerant of such fluctuations...But not in my experience. They will definitely let you know when they are not happy. Also, keep them in temps on the lower side of your "reef acceptable" temp range (like 76-77F). In my experience, these corals are among the first to fade when temps get out of hand, so think about this when entertaining the thought of keeping one.
Feeding: Yes, these are hungry corals, and really should be fed a couple of times a week. They demonstrate a strong feeding response and are pretty easy to feed. Use small, meaty marine-based foods, such as Cycolp-eez, Oyster Eggs, or finely mined seafood and Mysis. Gently squirt food in the direction of the corals' mouth, taking care not to blast full-bore into the coral. It goes without saying that you should shut off the flow while target feeding. If you have aggressive hermit crabs, shrimp, or Dwarf Angels, they can be a bit of a pain when target feeding these corals, so keep this in mind. I have personally tried the old trick of removing the specimen from the tank and placing it in a container of tank water while "marinating it" in food for 15-20 mins, so the coral can feed uninterrupted. Although excessive handling of this coral is not the best thing in the world, neither is having tons of shrimp and corals picking at the coral while it's attempting to feed!
Etc.: These are very cool corals, and can do quite well if you follow a few basic tips on their care. Don't be afraid to try one, but make surethat you are up to keeping one. Unlike say, Acros, they are not a "set and forget" coral. They require some active participation on your part in order to make sure that their needs are met. They are most "communicative", and will show you very clearly when they are not happy! Dont fear them, however, as they are colorful, interesting, and rewarding to keep!
In the interest of us all becoming better reefers, please share your tips, experiences, and thoughts on these beautiful corals here, so that we can all learn! This was the most cursory of dialogues about them; let's build on the body of knowledge available, so that more reefers can benefit from the experiences of our peers!
Thanks for stopping by!
Stay Wet
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
nick0206
Active Member
With the transition to Korallen-zucht, i.e. system ULNS, I stopped feeding corals with reef roids, because even after half a year, my nutrients are still not completely ULNS level.
Phosphate has been stable for a month now at 0 (Hannah), but nitrate is still holding at 3 - 5.
Since April, I stopped giving reef-roids, only Amino-SPS (every other day), Amino-LPS (every other day - opposite to sps) and Coral-vitalizer (every other day).
I have a tank dominated by SPS, so the light and flow are completely for SPS, but LPS is doing great.
On the last Friday, I measured the PAR for the first time and at the bottom, where all the LPS are located, the level of PAR was from 120 to 200.
Lobophylia regained its full color, which once again proves that water quality is more important than feeding.
I took this photo the day before yesterday.
Phosphate has been stable for a month now at 0 (Hannah), but nitrate is still holding at 3 - 5.
Since April, I stopped giving reef-roids, only Amino-SPS (every other day), Amino-LPS (every other day - opposite to sps) and Coral-vitalizer (every other day).
I have a tank dominated by SPS, so the light and flow are completely for SPS, but LPS is doing great.
On the last Friday, I measured the PAR for the first time and at the bottom, where all the LPS are located, the level of PAR was from 120 to 200.
Lobophylia regained its full color, which once again proves that water quality is more important than feeding.
I took this photo the day before yesterday.
gazerbo
New Member
I love lobos are bought 3 of them from you guys! I keep checking your website for another colorful one like I had that I loved the most! I believe the one might have been sold mislabeled because it had a different look about it then the way my other lobos looked. Maybe it was a tracy or something. Anyway, all 3 of them died! My tank stays around 89 degrees in summer and i live in florida. I keep the ac around 78 but because of the lights I suppose is why the water gets so warm. Do you think they could have died from being kept in 80 degree temp? I hope not because I am on the lookout for a few more. I love them when they are smaller and dont resemble a brain! I keep checking your website trying to find one like my fave. It was a orangish pink with a teal center!
nick0206
Active Member
Recently I accidentally moved a stone with an Euphyllia (frogspown) closer to my Lobo. In the morning, 4 out of 6 Euphyllia heads were burned (covered with white gel). I tried to save them and made a bath with lugol. Did not help. Lobo is very aggressive, more than Euphyllia. Before that, half a year ago, Scoli became Lobo's victim.
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