Difference between a Sun Coral and Dendro?

[thefishgirl]

What is the difference between a sun coral and a dendro?

I recently acquired 3 heads of "sun coral" in a trade. He told me to put it in a cave, light current and to hand feed it.

I've had it for only a couple of days, but since I've added it to my tank, it's only been open for a few minutes on the first day. It is not completely closed up-center is only slightly opened. I do not have it sitting in a totally dark cave, but maybe that's what it needs. It's still getting light, just not directly under the light. I've also attempted to feed it using a turkey baster. They don't seem all that interested. :(

Any recommendations or suggestions?

[ReeferRob]

Beautiful coral, pain in the arse to keep alive. I managed to keep on for about a year. I had it in a very dimly lite cave with lots of flow. They are not photosynthetic, hence the need for flow to bring food to them.
If your able to move it easily the best way to feed them is with actinic only or Lunar. Put it in the sand, cut the bottom off a 20 oz or 2 liter bottle and place it over the coral. Unscrew cap and blast mysis, and cyclopeeze. If its a pain to move it every day or every other give them a small shoot of food with the high flow to get them open. Kinda teasing them with a small taste. Once open cut off all flow and gently blast them(I say gently so they don't close up when you blast) and shoot some mysis and what not at them.
Be care full not to touch the open polyps with turkey baster, they are extremely sticky and youll probably not get the baster back without injuring the sun coral, (tubastrea)
Hope this helps.

[jimsflies]

Sun corals require more maintenance because they aren't open and feeding as often. My dendros are open at least 80% of the time during the day. Whereas suncorals come out at night or after heavy feeding of the tank. Aside from that, the only difference is the dendros are 2-4 times the size of sun polyps (at least the ones I have seen).

[graphixx]

agreed that they are hard to keep just cause of the backwards feeding regemin.

they can acclimate to "day time" feeding I have heard it done. I am sure it would take some time.....
I have kept them in the past and the best success i had with them is when I had a piece that was in pretty bad shape (too close to some acans and had some alleopathy happen) I put it in my sump and it did FANTASTIC!!!!

beautiful coral when they are open but the feeding routine makes them more tedious to be successful with them.

GOOD LUCK

[thefishgirl]

This is great. A cave and feeding after dark will not be a problem I have them in my saltwater "lagoon" so reaching them is not an issue. I'll just put them in a spot where I can feed them with a turkey baster.

Cross your fingers!

[The Rugger]

Good Luck.

[thefishgirl]

Graphixx... I bet they'd like some of your seafood chowda!

[thefishgirl]

I successfully fed my lil suns tonight. I put them in a flowerpot, stolen from my clowns, facing away from the light. They seem to like it there. Of course, I have them for only about 24 hours. :)

[thefishgirl]

Their new home. Do I need to add some sand to the pot to make them even happier?

http://i477.photobucket.com/albums/rr140/becky1366/Sept%202009%20Zoas%20and%20Chalice/000_0035.jpg

[graphixx]

very nice little shelter for them!!! glad to hear they ate!!

[stunreefer]

What is the difference between a sun coral and a dendro?
"Sun Coral" is a common name for Species from the Genus Tubastrea. "Dendro" is a common name for Species from the Genus Dendrophyllia. Both Genuses belong to the family Dendrophyllidae.

Generaly speaking Tubastrea sp. are in the distribution chain (collector to exporter to importer to wholesaler to LFS to you) much, much longer than Dendrophyllia sp. making them weaker upon receipt due to the fact that no one feeds them along the way... until we get them. Tubastrea sp. also seem to require more consistant feedings IME. In short, "sun coral" will require a little more TLC when it gets into your hands compared to "dendros".

Physicaly speaking, as mentioned above, Dendrophyllia typically has larger oral discs (polyps) than Tubastrea, but both can vary greatly in color (pink, orange, yellow, black, red, clear) and growth patterns (branching, balling, etc.).

I recently acquired 3 heads of "sun coral" in a trade. He told me to put it in a cave, light current and to hand feed it.
The notion that they must be kept in the shade is a misnomer... it's true that some non-photosynthetic coral are light sensitive but Tubastrea and Dendrophyllia sp. are not. In nature these corals rely on zoaplankton, which comes out of the rocks and crevices at night, which is why they "train" themselves to open at night... once they sense the food, it's time to feast ;) Most stony corals outcompete "Sun Coral" and "Dendros" for space on the reef as they grow much faster than their non-photosynthetic counterparts leading the non-photos to dwell and grow deeper and in shaded areas where other coral cannot survive. I've personally seen Tubastrea faulkneri in ten feet of water in full sunlight with polyps wide open while diving in Mexico.


Do I need to add some sand to the pot to make them even happier?
No, they really don't need to be in a pot either, but it won't matter one way or the other less aesthetics.

FWIW, my colonies of Tubastrea faulkneri stay open 24/7. Per your picture it appears you have several polyps of Tubastrea coccinea. Keep feeding the heck out of them, and they'll eventually regrow over that skeleton (you can see the whole thing was polyps at one point). If you can get the polyps open, feed the heck outta them with meaty foods, if not, try the "tupperware method": http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1528186&perpage=&pagenumber=2 works like a champ!

[thefishgirl]

If nothing else, the flower pot makes it easier to keep the shrimp out when it's feeding time. They love a lil squirt with the turkey baster... or not. :D