Home Small Polyp Stony Corals Add Vivid Greenery to Your Reef with our Hydnophora Corals for Sale Online

Add Vivid Greenery to Your Reef with our Hydnophora Corals for Sale Online

When we look at Hydnophora coral colonies, it is often evocative of coniferous evergreens, not only for the predominately green colors but also the shape of the branching colony as it grows. Hydnophora is an exceptionally lovely and aggressive LPS species with a shape like few other corals. As the branches grow, the surface is covered with feeding tentacles that lend an almost feathery appearance to the colony. One of the common names for this species is velvet horn coral, which also describes the shape and coverage of the living tissue of the coral. Whether the polyps look like evergreens, velvet or feathers to your eye, they’re a cool effect from a very cool coral species and our Hydnophora frags are a lovely addition to most any reef display.

Hydnophora Coral Care Guide

Experience Level

Hydnophora frags are fairly easy to keep but we hesitate to call them a beginner’s coral, as they are quite aggressive and will actively sting just about anything within the reach of their mesentery filaments, or sweeper tentacles. These filaments can extend a surprising distance from the colony and pack quite a wallop, so perhaps not a good choice for reefers just getting started.

Optimal Water Quality Parameters

Temperature: 72-78F, 22-25C
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

Lighting Preferences:

Hydnophora is tolerant of most lighting conditions but coralheads will achieve the best growth and polyp extension under medium-high to high lighting intensities.

Water Flow Preferences:

Velvet horn coral frags will also tolerate most flow conditions but do best with shifting, laminar flows that are stronger and preferred by many SPS species. That said, be careful not to subject your Hydnophora colony to strong, direct flows that are sustained for too long without shifting, as this coral has sharp skeletal ridges that can erode the living tissue and lead to bacterial infections.

Placement Considerations:

After acclimation, choose a spot in the upper third of your reef display with lighting and flows described above. If the colony is happy, it will expand fairly quickly, so keep a close eye on any neighboring invertebrates. It’s not a matter of if they’ll get stung but when. Plan accordingly.

Feeding Considerations:

Hydnophora will respond well to supplemental feeding of planktonic foods occasionally and do not require any special feeding strategies. Use a pipette or baster and softly release the food upstream from the colony and let the flow deliver the food to the feeding tentacles of the polyps. For better extension and response, consider priming the colony first with some thawed food juice.

Healthy Online Hydnophora Coral Frags from CoralFrags.com

If you’ve read all the caveats about keeping this species, have a spot for it in your frag tank or display and are ready to add Hydnophora to your collection, by all means, go for it. Most coralheads have at least one Hydnophora colony in at least one of their systems and it’s no mystery why. It’s simply a beautiful coral that grows well and adds a splash of electric green just about anywhere the reefers wants to put it. Thanks for looking!

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