Eye of Sauron Plate Coral

The Eye of Sauron Plate Coral is a solitary, semi-aggressive coral with shorter tentacles than its cousin, the Long Tentacle Plate Coral. However, even with shorter tentacles, the Eye of Sauron Plate Coral can still damage other corals it comes into contact. For placement in the aquarium, keep in mind that the Eye of Sauron Plate Coral will often inflate itself with water and expand to twice its size so take extra precaution to ensure ample space between neighboring corals. The Eye of Sauron Plate Coral will do best placed on the bottom of a reef aquarium, preferably lying on a fine sandy substrate.

The Eye of Sauron Plate Coral is relatively easy to maintain in the reef aquarium and makes an excellent candidate for the beginner reef aquarist. Care should be taken in handling it however, to prevent damage. The Eye of Sauron Plate Coral requires moderate lighting achieved by T-5s, powerful LEDs or the more intense metal halides combined with low to medium water movement within the aquarium. For continued good health, the Eye of Sauron Plate Coral will benefit from the addition of calcium, strontium, iodine, magnesium and trace elements to the water column.

The photosynthetic symbiotic zooxanthellae algae hosted within the Eye of Sauron Plate Coral satisfies the majority of its nutritional requirements. However, the Eye of Sauron Plate Coral will benefit from supplemental feedings in the form of zooplankton, brine shrimp, or mysis shrimp fed twice per week in the evening while its tentacles are visible.