Antipathes Black Coral Care Guide
Antipathes is a deep-water, non-photosynthetic black coral with a protein-chitin skeleton; CITES-protected, very slow growing and rare in trade.
Overview
Antipathes is a genus of black coral in the order Antipatharia. Black corals are non-photosynthetic (azooxanthellate): they contain no symbiotic algae and feed by capturing zooplankton and meiofauna. The genus is named for the characteristically dark, protein-and-chitin skeleton, while the living polyps may be brightly coloured. It is a rare, expert-only aquarium subject.
Taxonomy
- Order: Antipatharia (Milne Edwards, 1857)
- Family: Antipathidae
- Genus: Antipathes
- Scientific name: Antipathes sp.
- Common name: Black Coral
Habitat
Black corals occur throughout all oceans from the surface to the deep sea, but nearly 75% of species are found only below 50 m. The genus is associated with deepwater Indo-Pacific reefs. Its skeleton is built from protein and chitin rather than calcium carbonate, distinguishing it from stony corals.
Tank requirements
- Salinity: 1.024–1.026 SG
- Temperature: 22–25 °C (72–77 °F)
- pH: 8.1–8.4
- dKH (alkalinity): 8–11
- Calcium: 400–450 ppm
- Magnesium: 1280–1350 ppm
- Nitrate: below 20 ppm; phosphate below 0.15 ppm
- Lighting: low (0–50 PAR); not light-dependent
- Flow: medium to high
- Minimum tank age: about 1 year
Feeding
Because it is non-photosynthetic, Antipathes depends entirely on feeding. It requires regular spot-feeding with planktonic foods such as phytoplankton, supplemented with amino acids. Heavy feeding raises dissolved nutrients, so strong filtration and stable, mature water are needed.
Growth and conservation
Growth is extremely slow; field colonies grow on the order of a few centimetres per year, and large specimens can be many decades old. Black corals are listed in Appendix II of CITES, restricting their international trade, and they are rarely available to aquarists.
Compatibility
Antipathes is passive and lacks aggressive stinging tentacles, and is regarded as reef-, shrimp- and fish-safe. Its difficulty lies in feeding and water quality rather than aggression.