Galaxea Coral

 Quick Care Facts

• Care Level: Moderate   • Temperament: Aggressive   • Waterflow: Medium
• Placement: Any   • Lighting: Moderate to High   • Color Form: Green, Gray, Pink, Brown
 • Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements   • Water Conditions: 72-78° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, sg 1.023-1.025
• Origin: South Pacific   • Family: Oculinidae   • Species: LPS Hard Corals

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The Galaxea Coral (Galaxea sp.) is a beautifully colored South Pacific LPS coral that is highly priced within the marine reef aquarium hobby for both its appearance and relative hardiness within the aquarium environment. Galaxea Corals can be found in a variety of colors including: Tan, Brown, Green, Pink, Gray and Purple. They also have an equally varied collection of common names that they go by within the hobby, including: Galaxy, Star, Crystal, Starburst, Brittle or Tooth Coral.

While Galaxea sp. can be found in a variety of colors with an equal variety of names, the most common version found within the hobby is the green colored Green Galaxea Coral. They have been widely imported and aqua-cultured because they do well within the reef aquarium with only an intermediate level of reef experience and can tolerate a variety of aquarium conditions and placements and still thrive. Hobbyists new to reef keeping look to the Galaxea Coral (Galaxea sp.) for its ease of care, while reef experts keep it just for its brilliant appearance.

Galaxea Coral (Galaxea sp.) are best characterized as hardy aggressive coral that can be right at home in a variety of reef setups. The Galaxea Coral is considered a hardy coral species because it requires only moderate lighting, medium water flow and twice a week supplemental feedings in order to thrive. When housed in an aquarium with moderate lighting, the Galaxea Coral should be placed in a middle to high position on the reef, while in high lighting situations it should be place in a middle to lower position on the reef.

For aquariums with extremely strong lighting, the Galaxea Coral can be placed on the aquarium substrate. They are considered an aggressive species due to their sweeper tentacles, which will extend out upwards of 4 inches during the night and will sting anything they touch. This can be addressed by proper placement of the coral that keeps it approximately 6 inches or so away from its closest neighbor. Varied medium water flow is also important to the health of the Galaxea Coral as it brings feeding opportunities from planktonic foods that are drifting in the current and removes waste products generated by the coral.

The Galaxea Coral (Galaxea sp.) requires feedings of meaty foods 2 to 3 times per week. They will readily accept a variety of planktonic coral foods, micro-invertebrate foods along with brine shrimp, mysis shrimp or similar meaty foods. They will use their tentacles to remove these foodstuffs from the current and can also be target fed using a feeding pipette that are readily available within the hobby. Like most invertebrates, Galaxea Coral require additional supplements in the form of calcium, strontium and trace elements in order to allow them to build their exoskeleton for proper growth.