Florida Acropora Care Guide
Florida Acropora (Acropora florida) is a SPS coral. Care covers 200-350 PAR, high flow, reef parameters and feeding; intermediate level.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Florida Acropora (Acropora florida) is a SPS coral in the family Acroporidae. Branching Acropora with prominent axial corallites and peripheral spread. Hardy compared to many Acros.
Taxonomy
- Family: Acroporidae
- Genus: Acropora
- Scientific name: Acropora florida
- Common synonyms: Florida Acro
Habitat
In the wild, Acropora florida is reported from Indo-Pacific, where it occupies shallow reef flats and upper slopes (typically 1-15 m). The species adopts a branching growth form on hard substrate within zooxanthellate reef communities.
Tank requirements
- Salinity (specific gravity): 1.025-1.026
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Carbonate hardness (dKH): 7.5-9
- Calcium: 420-450 ppm
- Magnesium: 1300-1400 ppm
- Phosphate (max): 0.03 ppm
- Nitrate (max): 5 ppm
- Minimum system age: 6 months
Placement and lighting
- PAR (placement zone): 200-350 PAR
- Water flow: high
Place this SPS coral on the upper rockwork where light is bright and water movement is strong, ideally turbulent rather than laminar. Acclimate gradually to high PAR over 2-3 weeks to avoid bleaching. SPS demand a mature system: stable alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium with phosphate and nitrate kept ultra-low.
Feeding
Acropora florida hosts symbiotic zooxanthellae and derives most of its energy through photosynthesis. Additional feeding is generally not required when lighting is adequate.
Compatibility
This coral is passive toward neighbours. Reef-safe with most fish and invertebrates.
Care notes
Difficulty level: intermediate. Reported skeletal growth in well-tuned reef tanks is approximately 0.5-1 cm/month. Propagation by fragmentation is straightforward for branching colonies — separate branches or polyps with a bone cutter, glue to plug, allow 1-2 weeks for healing. Maintain stable alkalinity (avoid swings above ±0.5 dKH per day) to preserve tissue health.
Acropora florida Propagation Guide
Overview
Acropora florida is a branching stony coral in the family Acroporidae with prominent axial corallites and a peripheral spread. Like all Acropora, it grows as a colony of small polyps that share tissue and build a calcium carbonate skeleton, with symbiotic Symbiodinium algae providing energy through photosynthesis. Its branches are fragged at the tips in the same way as other SPS corals.
Reproductive Mode
Acropora reproduce sexually by releasing gametes and asexually when broken branches reattach and grow into new colonies. Aquarium propagation uses fragmentation because each frag carries the parent's genetics and resumes growth once secured to a surface.
Fragging / Asexual Propagation
- Choose a healthy, well-coloured branch tip from an established parent colony.
- Cut or snap the branch cleanly with bone cutters or a coral saw.
- Glue the frag to a plug or rock with cyanoacrylate or epoxy.
- Place the frag in moderate light and flow until tissue grows over the cut, then raise it.
- Dip and quarantine new frags before adding them to a display.
In a well-maintained reef aquarium, finger-sized fragments can grow into much larger colonies within one to two years, so a single parent colony yields many frags over time.
Conditions for Propagation
Fragments need stable conditions to heal and grow. Acropora are especially susceptible to bleaching when stressed, caused by the loss of their zooxanthellae, so temperature, salinity, alkalinity, calcium and magnesium must stay steady. High light and high flow support the dense skeletal growth this branching form depends on.
Sexual Reproduction
Wild Acropora take part in annual mass-spawning, releasing gametes into the water for external fertilisation and larval dispersal. This is rarely reproduced in home systems, so hobby propagation relies on fragmentation.