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Acropora Corals

Few corals evoke a more vivid image in the mind’s eye that the small polyp stony corals of the Acropora genus. For many years, caring for Acropora and other SPS species in closed coral systems in homes and businesses was considered impossible. These corals were too delicate, caring for them was too demanding and the prospects of failure were too high to even consider it. We now know that this was misinformed superstition. The near-endless variety of Acropora coral frags online and in your LFS have banished that idea forever and thankfully so, as spires of thriving Acropora species in reef systems are now a common sight. Whether they are branching, encrusting, tabling, bushy or another shape, the many species in the Acropora genus are a delight to the eye of the beholder and most definitely a joy to keep, as long as they receive the level of care required.

Acropora Coral Care Guide

Acropora Experience Level

Intermediate to difficult, depending on the species. Acropora species are found in many of the world’s tropical oceans but will not tolerate less-than-ideal water conditions for long. Acropora coral frags should not be acclimated to a system that is less than four months old and coralheads wanting success with Acro frags should be prepared to provide excellent care and robust, proactively managed filtration and maintenance.

Optimal Water Quality Parameters for Acropora

Temperature: 77-82F, 25-28C
pH: 8.1-8.3
dKH: 7-11 (125-200ppm CaCO3 equivalent)
Calcium: 375-450ppm
Magnesium: 1275-1350ppm
Salinity: 35ppt
Ammonia (NH3): less than 0.1ppm
Nitrite (NO2): less than 0.2ppm
Nitrate (NO3): less than 0.2ppm
Phosphates (PO4): less than 0.03ppm

*Extra care must be taken to maintain nitrate and phosphate levels as low as possible, as these interfere with an Acropora colony’s ability to build its calcareous skeleton.

Acropora Lighting Preferences:

Although lighting requirements vary somewhat by species and their native habitats, Acros tend to prefer strong, direct lighting high in the water column. This keeps the symbiotic and photosynthetic zooxanthellae algae living in their tissue healthy and providing the glucose, nutrients and other byproducts of photosynthesis that these corals need.

Acropora Water Flow Preferences:

Acropora corals most often require the strong, shifting laminar water flows found on the world’s largest coral reefs. These flows deliver the zoo- and phytoplankton the small Acro polyps trap and digest and help remove waste. They also provide the buffeting, irregular flows these corals have adapted to over millions of years. Pulsing, programmable powerheads are highly recommended.

Acropora Placement Considerations:

Even though Acropora prefer more intense lighting, we recommend initially placing them just below the highest points in your display tank to ensure that the zooxanthellae do not get shocked, die and starve the host coral. If conditions are optimal (WQ, flow, lighting, etc.) the corallites or polyps of the colony should extend from the skeleton with full, lush tentacles on each polyp. If the polyps have a stunted appearance or do not deploy at all, make small incremental changes to the flow and placement, making sure to allow time between adjustments to determine how or if these tweaks are effective. Only then will you know what does and does not work for this particular Acro species. Also be mindful of not placing Acropora frags near other corals that can reach and sting them. Acros have a very thin veneer of living tissue over the skeletons they create, which is incredibly delicate and intolerant of any kind of injury.

Acropora Feeding Considerations:

Successful Acropora coralheads are divided on whether or not direct supplemental feeding is necessary to keep Acros happy and healthy but one they (mostly) agree on is the necessity to dose supplements. What supplements exactly are required differ somewhat between each of them but plan on dosing Strontium, Molybdenum and other trace elements. Even salt mixes that claim to provide these trace elements will not be sufficient, as your growing corals consume an ever-larger amount of these elements as they grow and thrive. After your Acropora frags are fully acclimated and thriving, you can experiment with feeding one or two colonies with small, planktonic foods to determine if this is the right approach for you but always remember that any nutrients you introduce into your system will affect your water quality. Go easy at first and test early and often to ensure your WQ params remain stable.

Healthy Acropora SPS Corals Online from CoralFrags.com

If you’re ready to add some affordable Acropora frags to your quarantine tank, please browse our selection and buy with confidence. We can’t have Acropora-eating flatworms (AEFWs,) parasitic nudibranchs and other unwanted hitchhikers in our quarantine and growout systems and we most definitely don’t want to pass any of these pests on to our clients’ systems. Each online Acro coral frag we sell is carefully inspected before shipment to help prevent the spread of these unwanted and potentially disastrous pests but we urge our customers to carefully dip and quarantine their coral frags as well. A few preventative steps early can prevent major headache and heartaches later. Thanks very much for placing your confidence in our professionalism and attention to detail. We work hard to remain your trusted online coral frag supplier.

Acropora Corals

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