Chalice coral care

Quick reference

What are chalice corals?

Echinophyllia aspera, the species most often called chalice coral, ranges from the Red Sea and Madagascar to Japan, Australia and the Pacific islands.^[11] Wikipedia says it's most common at 10–30 m in sheltered fore-reef habitats, with colonies up to 60 cm across; SeaLifeBase and Meerwasser-Lexikon give a depth range of 1–60 m, and Meerwasser-Lexikon a size of about 25 cm.^{[11, 12, 7]} Oxypora lacera lives on protected reef slopes from the Red Sea to Japan and seldom exceeds 30 cm.^{[13, 14]} Mycedium elephantotus occurs in most reef habitats sheltered from strong waves, at 6–70 m (SeaLifeBase; Meerwasser-Lexikon says 3–70 m), and in the Gulf of Aqaba colonies below 20 m can exceed 1 m across.^{[15, 8, 16]} Quality Marine notes that chalices shed sediment, which lets them live in turbid lagoons.^[5]

All are on CITES Appendix II.^[17] The IUCN rates E. aspera, O. lacera and M. elephantotus Least Concern; for E. lamellosa, the Coral Trait Database gives Least Concern but Meerwasser-Lexikon gives Vulnerable.^{[12, 14, 15, 18, 9]} Echinophyllia went from essentially no recorded imports in 1991–2000 to the 14th most-imported coral genus in CITES records, most of it after 2010, and Hoeksema notes that Lobophylliidae are not popular as cultivated specimens.^[19] Even so, Reef Builders says hundreds of aquacultured chalice strains have been grown and shared in the hobby.^[2]

Lighting for chalice corals

Advice varies. Reef Builders suggests lower-moderate light, around 100 PAR, with some deeper-water species preferring less.^[2] DeVito found Echinophyllia survives easily in low light but says it seems to thrive on bright light, and TFH says moderate to bright.^{[3, 4]} Quality Marine reports that some keepers had to shade specimens to stop bleaching while others only succeeded under strong metal halides, and advises starting low and adjusting gradually.^[5] ORA lists its Echinopora blue chalice at medium to high.^[10] None of these is a measured study.

Flow and placement

Moderate for most, and enough to keep debris off the plate: Reef Builders says settled debris damages the tissue, and DeVito found the current otherwise didn't seem to matter.^{[2, 3]} TFH and Quality Marine say moderate; ORA gives moderate to strong for Echinopora, and LiveAquaria medium to strong for Oxypora.^{[4, 5, 10, 27]}

Feeding

Optional; chalices are mainly photosynthetic.^[2] Echinophyllia puts out feeding tentacles only after dark, so target-feed in the evening: DeVito used small pieces of brine shrimp, mysis or chopped seafood, a little per mouth, and TFH suggests Cyclops.^{[3, 4]} Reef Builders warns they are extremely slow eaters.^[2] Mycedium is different: it has no tentacles and feeds by trapping suspended particles in mucus.^[16]

Aggression and spacing

More aggressive than they look. DeVito has seen Echinophyllia sweeper tentacles over a foot long on occasion, and Reef Builders says chalices can have long sweepers that sting nearby corals.^{[3, 2]} They also fight with digestive (mesenterial) filaments: Justin Credabel calls Echinophyllia notorious for putting them out onto neighbours at night, and in his 20,000-gallon display Acropora were easily digested, while a Stylophora touching an Echinophyllia and a Mycedium took only very minor damage.^[6] TFH and Quality Marine describe chemical aggression too; TFH suggests running activated carbon, and Quality Marine a buffer zone.^{[4, 5]} ORA calls its Echinopora usually peaceful but says it can sting neighbours with sweepers at night.^[10]

Wear gloves: DeVito became sensitized to Echinophyllia and found handling it bare-handed painful.^[3]

Tankmates

We found no published source naming fish or invertebrates that target chalices specifically. As general LPS advice, Top Shelf Aquatics says dwarf angelfish may nip fleshy LPS and large angelfish graze them.^[28] Among corals, Acropora came off worst in one large display, while a Lithophyllon and a Mycedium growing beside an Echinophyllia showed no damage.^[6] Quality Marine's importer listing says Echinophyllia are sensitive to elevated copper; we found no independent source.^[29]

Fragging and propagation

DeVito fragged Echinophyllia with a straight-edged razor blade: two cuts about an inch long and an inch apart, in from the edge, then snap out the section between them.^[3] Quality Marine uses a rotary tool, bone cutters or a hammer and chisel on thicker plates.^[5] Reef Builders advises keeping at least one eye (mouth) in each frag, not cutting through eyes, and dipping frags in iodine afterwards because the cut edges heal slowly and are prone to infection.^[2] Growth reports differ: DeVito and Quality Marine call Echinophyllia slow, while TFH and Reef Builders say it can grow fast; ORA calls its Echinopora very fast growing.^{[3, 5, 4, 2, 10]}

Troubleshooting

Common mistakes

• •Treating every chalice the same: Echinopora is listed for more light and flow and grows fast, and Mycedium has no tentacles.^{[10, 16]}
• •Placing it within reach of other corals: Echinophyllia sweepers can exceed a foot, and its digestive filaments come out at night.^{[3, 6]}
• •Handling it bare-handed.^[3]
• •Expecting a daytime feeding response; Echinophyllia's feeding tentacles come out only after dark.^[3]
• •Cutting through eyes, or making frags without a mouth.^[2]
• •Too little flow, so debris settles on the plate.^[2]
• •Trusting the species name on a store label.^{[25, 26]}

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.

Chalice coral FAQ

What is a chalice coral?

A trade name, not a species: plating and encrusting stony corals mainly from Echinophyllia and Oxypora (family Lobophylliidae) and Mycedium and Echinopora (Merulinidae). Their old family, Pectiniidae, is no longer valid.^{[1, 2, 20, 21, 22]}

Are chalice corals aggressive?

Yes. Echinophyllia sweepers have been seen over a foot long,^[3] and Echinophyllia also puts out digestive filaments at night that can digest corals such as Acropora.^[6] Leave a buffer zone around them.^[5]

How much light does a chalice coral need?

Advice varies: Reef Builders suggests around 100 PAR, while DeVito and TFH favour brighter light.^{[2, 3, 4]} Quality Marine reports some keepers shading specimens to prevent bleaching and others needing strong light, and advises starting low and adjusting gradually.^[5] Echinopora chalices are listed for medium to high light.^[10]

How do you feed a chalice coral?

Feeding is optional, because they are mainly photosynthetic.^{[2, 4]} Echinophyllia puts out feeding tentacles only after dark, so target-feed small foods such as brine shrimp, mysis or Cyclops in the evening, and slowly.^{[3, 4, 2]} Mycedium has no tentacles and feeds by trapping particles in mucus.^[16]

How do you frag a chalice coral?

Cut thin plates with a razor blade, or use bone cutters or a rotary tool on thicker ones.^{[3, 5]} Keep at least one eye (mouth) in each frag, and dip frags in iodine afterwards because the cut edges can become infected.^[2]

Do chalice corals grow fast?

Sources disagree. DeVito and Quality Marine describe Echinophyllia as slow, while TFH and Reef Builders say it can grow quickly; ORA calls Echinopora chalices very fast growing.^{[3, 5, 4, 2, 10]}

Why is my chalice coral bleaching?

Possibly too much light for that specimen: Quality Marine reports keepers who had to move chalices into shade to stop bleaching, and advises starting low and adjusting gradually.^[5] Check flow too, because settled debris damages the tissue.^[2]