Echinata coral
Acanthastrea echinata
CoralMarine
This coral forms massive or encrusting colonies up to 30 cm. Polyps are large, fleshy, with prominent septa. Coloration is highly variable: green, red, orange, purple, often with contrasting patterns. It possesses sweeper tentacles that extend at night. No obvious sexual dimorphism.
Recommended parameters
| Parameter | Recommended range |
|---|---|
| Temperature | 24–28 |
| pH | 8.1–8.4 |
| KH | 8–12 |
| Salinity | 1.023–1.025 |
| NO₃ | ≤ 10 |
| PO₄ | ≤ 0.1 |
Care
Difficulty3/5
Dietphotosynthetic
Min. tank100 L
Min. group1
Adult size30 cm
Lifespan10 ans
Temperamentsemi-aggressive
Care notes
A minimum tank size of 100 liters is recommended. Maintain temperature 24-28°C, pH 8.1-8.4, salinity 1.023-1.025. Moderate lighting and medium flow are suitable. It is photosynthetic but benefits from targeted feeding (brine shrimp, mysis). Beware of sweeper tentacles: space at least 15 cm from other corals. Good water quality (nitrate <10 ppm, phosphate <0.1 ppm) is essential.