A lot of reef keepers are really into small polyp stony aquariums.
You see them all over the online forums and tank of the months and whatnot.
It’s no surprise really, an SPS reef can be a striking display of shapes and colors.
The problem is, as much as we like them, they don’t always like us.
An SPS tank can be really difficult, and honestly, not every hobbyist is looking for a challenge.
Ok, so why is an SPS tank considered difficult.
In short, an SPS dominated aquarium can be a major hassle to maintain.
If the reef tank is neglected by the aquarist for even short periods of time, the health
of the corals can often take a swift downturn.
Sometimes, the occasional colony will suddenly crash despite what appears to be pristine
water quality.
There are plenty of experienced hobbyists that have struggled mightily with keeping
an SPS dominated tank long term.
This video is all about replicating the appearance of a traditional SPS reef with selections
of much hardier SPS corals.
When most people describe the requirements of an SPS system, things like high light,
high flow, pristine water, and rock solid chemistry, are commonly listed.
The problem here is that they are casting a blanket statement over a wide range of corals
when in reality only a small subset really requires these.
Basically, people are taking the requirements for the most sensitive varieties of coral
such as Acropora and Montipora and projecting it onto all SPS corals.
In a way, it makes sense because if the conditions are right for Acropora, chances are they will
suffice for some of the care of more hardy SPS corals.
The mistake many hobbyists make however is assuming that all SPS require these conditions.
In fact, it is possible to have an SPS dominated aquarium with vastly different conditions.
Let’s quickly go over some alternatives to fill out an SPS aquarium that are easier
to maintain than the delicate Acropora and Montipora corals.
To do this, we will first look at the shapes of the colonies.
There are three main growth forms of SPS, branching colonies, encrusting colonies, and
plating colonies.
Let’s start with branching colonies.
There are a few types of SPS to choose from that fill in adequately for their more delicate
counterparts.
For example, Pocillopora, Seriatopora, Stylophora, and Porites all have branching variants and
are significantly easier to care for.
Pocillopora can be kept under a wide range of water conditions compared to more sensitive
SPS and even tolerate some degree of neglect.
They have some variation in its growth patterns.
Pocillopora damicornis for example is a branching colony that grows in a bush-like fashion.
Pocillopora verrucosa on the other hand grows thick club-shaped branches.
Most varieties of Pocillopora are either pink or green in color, but occasionally a yellow
variant is found.
An interesting tidbit about Pocillopora is that they are one of the few corals that can
detach from their skeleton when stressed and recolonize in a new location.
This process is called polyp bailout.
Aquarists sometimes see their colony of Pocillopora struggle and assume it has perished only to
discover dozens of new colonies growing all over the aquarium a month later.
Seriatopora, or bird’s nest corals grow densely packed branches that terminate in
a sharp point.
Seriatopora are one of the fastest growing SPS corals and it's possible to grow a grape-fruit
sized ball of bird’s nest coral from a 1” frag within 6 months.
The color of Seriatopora varies from species to species as well as the conditions they
are grown under.
One variety in particular when grown under low light develops purple and green polyps
and yellow skin.
When provided bright lighting, the entire colony transitions to a bright pink with no
trace of purple, green, or yellow.
One care requirement that is unavoidable is the need for flow.
Seriatopora require strong flow because of the growth pattern and density of its branches.
As the colony increases in size, less and less water circulation reaches to the middle
of the colony.
It is common in lower flow systems for the middle of the colony to start dying after
the coral reaches critical mass.
Stylophora appears similar to Pocillopora however Stylos tend to have more rounded tips
and the spacing of the polyps is more uniform.
It’s easy to get the two confused, but the care requirements are pretty much the same.
Medium to high light and medium to high flow.
Another difference is that Stylophora tend to grow more slowly than either Pocillopora
or Seriatopora.
Porites Porites or jewel coral comes in both a branching
as well as an encrusting growth form.
The branching colonies grow thick fingers that terminate in round smooth tips and have
a canary yellow color.
In terms of care, Porites are on the borderline of what one would consider challenging.
Their care requirements are similar to what one would expect from some of the more delicate
SPS such as high flow and high light.
As I just mentioned there is an encrusting form of Porites, and that leads nicely into
our discussion of encrusting corals in general.
The main encrusting coral is Montipora and it is really difficult to replicate the incredible
array of colors, but Porites has some unique features of its own
that makes it stand out.
It often hosts colonies of brightly colored Bisma worms.
Symbiotic relationships like this one between the worms and coral make the tank that much
more visually appealing and interesting.
One of my personal favorites among encrusting corals is Leptoseris.
It was somewhat unknown in the industry until a few years ago and has since exploded in
popularity mainly due to its intense coloration.
Most varieties are a combination of orange and yellow that are so vibrant it almost looks
metallic.
This is one of the corals that does pretty well in low light and in our experience doesn’t
do that well when under really strong light so it is better suited tanks like the one
we are trying to put together here.
The third and final growth form that is typical in an SPS reef aquarium is the plating form.
Both Acropora and Montipora have species capable of plating however between the two, it is
much more common in Montipora.
It is possible to replicate the plating appearance with scroll corals of the genus Turbinaria
and certain chalice corals.
Neither scroll corals nor chalice corals are SPS corals per se, but they have plating growth
forms that closely resemble that of Montipora.
As far as chalice corals go, there are over ten genera of corals that are commonly described
as chalices.
While some form fleshy plates such as Mycedium other types such as Echinopora are wafer thin
and grow in a fashion very similar to that of a plating Montipora.
Due to the number of coral varieties described as chalices, it is difficult to pin down a
set of care requirements that suit all members.
Some do very well in high light while others thrive only in the dimmest conditions.
Chalice corals tend to shift colors drastically depending on their environment so some experimentation
the part of the hobbyist is required to find the best conditions for overall health and
aesthetics.
So that pretty much sum its up.
An SPS dominant need not be ultra challenging.
Much of the recommendations one receives to care for a traditional SPS tank stem from
the requirements from two of the most challenging varieties, namely Acropora and Montipora.
Those requirements do not necessarily apply to many of there other corals out there so
it is entirely possible to assemble a stock list of robust specimens that share much in
common aesthetically with the more delicate species.
I hope this video gave you some ideas to chew on if you are looking to try an SPS system
but were hesitant because of everything you heard about their difficulty.
In any case, good luck and happy reefing.