coral

[nini]

is coral safe for octos?

 

[chrono_war01]

some are, some arn't especially fire corals!!

But you better ask the experts.

 

[cthulhu77]

Nini...have you maintained a reef tank before? You might want to try some soft corals prior to getting an octopus...

greg

 

[clownfish]

arnt corals harder to keep than octopus? you need more light wich octopus wont be tolarent to and all the equipment can get anoying.

 

[Scouse]

hard corals yes deffo, dunno about soft they seem not too bad....as long as your octo dont rip em apart

 

[i got crabs]

most soft corals arnt too hard to keep. never realy got to hard corals. but dont u think the equipment needed for corals would be a waste as they wouldnt apply to octo. light systems arnt cheap. matb better to try some delicate inverts such as shrimp. if there still around when u get your octo theyll b a good snack or sometimes if u have a good repore with yout lps theyll trade them with u for other supplies. though u never get back what u put into it.

 

[nini]

yeah i guess so never thought about that, looks like the coral would requier more then its worth
thanx

 

[Cephkid]

Just as a note: categorizing corals as SOFT and HARD isn't that wise. Anyways definite no-nos for an octo tank are Zoanthids, Ricordea (mostly), SPS and LPS (pretty much any stony corals) and brain. They require too much light.

 

[cthulhu77]

Well, resolving them into two groups is the way that they are typically sold, so soft and hard coral is just fine.

If you think that corals are harder to keep, or need more esoteric equipment than octopus, you are totally off your rocker.

greg

 

[LiquidFunk]

IMO, zoas dont need much light... ive got less than 100w on my 40g octo tank and the zoas do just fine (no octo yet, it may tear them apart).

Im sure octos are smart enough not to eat them (they are very toxic) and they dont sting, so I dont see why they would be a bad choice.

 

[cthulhu77]

Completely correct...most of them come from over 25 feet down, and do not require the stunningly bright lights of the true reef corals...

greg

 

[i got crabs]

i dont think corals are harder to keep than octos. quite the contrary. what i am saying is that not all of us have more than 1 tank or can aford more than 1 tank and nini should pick the inhabitants of her tank carefully. i also agree that mushrooms would b a good test coral as they spread quite readily if conditions are met and this is a good sighn that so good so far. there are other inverts that would b of a good trial process. i would also reccomend talking to few shop owners like i said. if u dedicate your buisness to one sometimes they will agree to trade for supplies. and im not talkin petco or petblablabla.(although i have to admit iv used them in a pinch for feeders,saltwater,filter suplies ect because i work late and there open longer.) what was i talkin about? oh yeagh.. ive traded new mushroom growth for turb snails as an example. the point tht im stumbling around here is just be careful how u go about it. consider the long run and plan financially. make the errors now and then when u get an octo it will b worthwhile in the end. i talk many wordz

 

[i got crabs]

and ps cthulhu77: im not saying that octos need more equipmnet just that ther equipment differs to some degree and it would probably b best to keep inverts with similer needs to cephs. by the way i like your art. u draw good. i drew my avatar though the digital reproduction is poopoo

 

[joefish84]

now i keep a 125 reef and starting a 75 octo an so far both tanks require just as much work except for the lighting factor but the octo tank makes up for that with the skimmer requirements and escapeproofing... zoos are probably a very bad idea for an octo tank considering how toxic they are and if your octo got into them he would more than likely die... also any stoneys are a definite no because all of them will sting your octo... softies or leathers on the other hand might be ok as long as its not a toadstool since they can release alot of toxins into the water if scewed with... mushrooms should be just fine though since they dont require much lighting and dont posess a sting and are for the most part non toxic... if your gonna do corals in your octo tank i would only use mushrooms ( excluding recordia). the mushrooms will also provide the tank with a little more color and give the octo more camoflauge opportunities... one side note though is if the mushroom ingest any peices of food you can expect it to be ripped open by the octo...

 

[Cephkid]

The ricordea and zoa's are nonos in my mind mostly because many types require bright lighting. But if you can find low light types, excellent. SPS, LPS, & Brain corals I have seen mostly require Metal Halides which are bad for most octos. Also many SPS have STRONG, LONG nematocysts (sweeper tentacles) which would be very harmful to the sensitive skin of an octopus. Octopuses are obviously harder to keep, I merely try to look for such an animals best 'comfort zone'.