Walking Dendro Coral

An absolutely delightful creature, the Walking Dendro coral contains inside of its skeleton a commensal peanut worm. As the worm moves around in search of food it also moves its coral host, which helps prevent the coral from being buried in the substrate. This is a fairly new animal to the captive aquarium scene which we are very excited about. It is usually yellowish to orange with long tentacles which emerge in dim lighting or when it detects food.

The Walking Dendro coral may contain photosynthetic algae within its tissues providing a small amount of energy, however it is best cared for like a non-photosythetic coral, that is, frequent feedings of meaty items. It will accept mysis shrimp, enriched brine shrimp, oyster eggs, pellets, etc. Feedings should be as regular as possible, at least once every two or three days. Weak specimens may conserve energy by refusing to open; in this situation food may have to settle on the polyps for some time before it will eat. The worm does not require much aside from a mature sand bed to provide it with food, and a slow acclimation to the aquarium.

If regular feedings are provided it will reward the dedicated aquarist with growth and good polyp extension. It is typically solitary and does not become colonial. It is semi-aggressive and should be protected from contacting other corals.

Because of its requirement for frequent feeding it makes an excellent tank-mate with sun coral, carnation, flowerpot, filter-feeding gorgonians, chili sponge, as well as invertebrates such as sponges, tunicates, porcelain crabs, feather duster worms including those living within Porites coral, clams and oysters, cucumbers and sea apples, etc.

• Difficulty: Advanced
• Growth Speed: Slow
• Lighting:Medium - High
• Average Placement: Low
• Water Flow: Low - Medium
• Temperament: Semi-Aggressive