Montipora Capricornis

 Quick Care Facts

• Care Level: Moderate   • Temperament: Peaceful   • Waterflow: Strong
• Placement: Middle to Top   • Lighting: Moderate to High   • Color Form: Green, Purple, Pink, Orange, Tan
 • Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace Elements   • Water Conditions: 72-79° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, sg 1.023-1.025
• Origin: Indo-Pacific   • Family: Acropoidae   • Species: SPS Hard Corals

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Montipora Capricornis is a popular species of SPS coral that is often referred to as a plate coral or vase coral, due to their distinctive outward growth pattern that resembles a plate or vase like shape. When grown under the proper lighting, water flow and water chemistry conditions Montipora corals are considered to be fast growing.

Hobbyists should carefully consider initial placement of the Montipora Capricornis in order to allow room for it to grow both outward and upwards. Many hobbyists use Montipora Corals to create horizontal ledges off of the main reef rock work, which creates a very pleasing aesthetic. Montipora Capricornis can exhibit a wide variety of coloration's; however, the most common color forms are green, orange, purple, pink and red.

It is also worth noting that Montipora Capricornis can exist in a variety of shades of each of these colors and can have outside edges of the coral that are a different color from the the rest of the coral.

Montipora Capricornis will do best in reef aquariums that have strong lighting and strong laminar water flow. Strong lighting via metal halides, high-end compact fluorescent or high-end LED lighting systems is required to provide enough photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) for the symbiotic zooxanthellae hosted within the coral to be able to produce adequate food for the coral.

Strong laminar water flow will both remove waste products from the surface of the coral and provide supplemental filter feeding opportunities.

When placing the coral hobbyists need to keep in mind the fast growth rate, outward or horizontal growth pattern and lighting requirements of the coral. Hobbyists with reef tanks that employ strong lighting will often place Montipora Capricornis near the bottom of the aquarium in order to give it room to grow up and out, while hobbyists with less lighting will need to place the coral closer to the surface to provide enough nutrition for the coral.

A good way to determine if the coral is happy in it's current location is to look to see if the corals outer edge has a white hue to it. This means that your coral is growing, which is a good indicator that the coral is happy and growing.

Montipora corals utilize photosynthesis to produce the majority own their own nutrition from the available aquarium lighting. They also contain polyps that will extend into the water column in order to filter feed on small plankton like food drifting through the water.

It is important that proper lighting and water flow is provided so that the Montipora capricornis can both produce food and remove waste products from the surface of the coral. While not required, supplemental feedings of foods designed for filter feeding invertebrates will increase the already fast growth rate of the coral.

Propagation of the coral is handled like most other SPS corals and is considered to be relatively easy. Hobbyists need simply cut off a piece of the parent coral and attached to a frag plug or piece of rock rubble to anchor it while it grows out.

Propagation of Montipora corals is particularly easy as one need simply grab an edge of the coral and snap a piece of it off. Once the piece is removed it can be glued onto another area of the live rock or a separate location for grow out.

It is okay to have your coral out of the water for several minutes while the glue is applied and to let it dry before being placed back into the tank.