Acan coral care

Quick reference

What is an acan?

Acan lords are stony corals with fleshy, finely textured polyps in almost every colour, from solid red to teal and pink stripes, with "rainbow" colonies the most prized.^{[3, 2]} Quality Marine says they demand little light or flow, stay fairly small, and pose little danger to neighbours.^[3]

Lighting for an acan

Low. Tidal Gardens recommends 25–50 PAR, says they don't need much light at all, and found the dimmest-lit colonies looked happiest; colour responds fast, one colony shifting from red to yellow in under 24 hours.^[1] Reef Builders recommends lower to moderate light.^[2]

Flow and placement

Gentle to moderate: enough to keep detritus off a coral that usually sits low in the tank. Tidal Gardens suggests cutting flow while feeding so the polyps can catch food.^{[1, 2]}

Feeding

Reef Builders calls regular target feeding essential for health, growth and colour, with small meaty foods such as mysis and brine shrimp two or three times a week, plus fine coral foods and broadcast feeding.^[2] Tidal Gardens recommends small pieces only, like chopped krill or mysis; healthy polyps look fat and inflated with tentacles out, and overdoing pellets can burn the tissue (one brand suggests about one pellet per polyp).^[1] Quality Marine says regular feeding makes it bud new polyps quickly.^[3]

Aggression and spacing

Sources differ. Quality Marine says acans pose little danger to nearby corals,^[3] while Tidal Gardens advises keeping space between them and neighbours because they have a powerful sting.^[1] Leave a little space and watch for damage.

Tankmates

Tidal Gardens recommends a dim, LPS-dominated tank with low-light companions such as Blastomussa over a mixed reef built around light-hungry Acropora or Montipora.^[1]

Disease and quarantine

Tidal Gardens says they tolerate slightly elevated nitrate, but tissue recession can follow as nitrate approaches 30–50 ppm; they also need a little phosphate.^[1]

Fragging and propagation

Reef Builders' method: wear gloves and eye protection, cut between polyps along the skeletal ridges with a coral saw, mount the piece on a plug with glue or epoxy, dip it in a coral iodine dip as directed, rinse, and place it in medium flow under lower to moderate light. Expect heavy slime afterwards, and keep algae off the cut edges.^[2] Growth rates are disputed: Reef Builders calls lords faster growing, Tidal Gardens relatively slow.^{[2, 1]}

Troubleshooting

Common mistakes

• •Placing it under high light.^[1]
• •Never target-feeding.^[2]
• •Feeding pieces too large for the polyps.^[1]
• •Overdosing pellets.^[1]

Equipment & food for this species

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Most LPS benefit from occasional target-feeding, and a dip on new frags catches hitchhiking pests before they reach the display.

Acan coral FAQ

How much light do acans need?

Not much: Tidal Gardens suggests 25–50 PAR; Reef Builders says lower to moderate.^{[1, 2]}

How often should I feed an acan?

Reef Builders suggests target-feeding small meaty foods two or three times a week.^[2]

Are acans aggressive?

Sources differ: Quality Marine says they pose little danger to neighbours; Tidal Gardens says they have a powerful sting.^{[3, 1]}

What's the difference between an acan and a Micromussa?

Acan lords are now a Micromussa: the species moved from Acanthastrea in 2016.^{[4, 3]}

How do you frag an acan?

Cut between polyps along the skeleton with a coral saw, glue the piece to a plug, dip and rinse it.^[2]