Yellow Tube Coral Care Guide
Yellow Tube Coral (Dendrophyllia sp.) is a NON-PHOTOSYNTHETIC coral. Care covers 0-50 PAR, medium flow, reef parameters and feeding; expert level.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Yellow Tube Coral (Dendrophyllia sp.) is a NON-PHOTOSYNTHETIC coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. Branching golden-yellow non-photosynthetic LPS with tubular corallites. Stunning when fed and bloomed.
Taxonomy
- Family: Dendrophylliidae
- Genus: Dendrophyllia
- Scientific name: Dendrophyllia sp.
- Common synonyms: Dendrophyllia, Branching Sun Coral
Habitat
In the wild, Dendrophyllia sp. is reported from Indo-Pacific, where it grows in shaded, current-swept habitats such as cave walls, overhangs, ledges, and deeper or turbid zones rather than on sunlit reef flats. As an azooxanthellate (non-photosynthetic) species it carries no symbiotic algae and depends on plankton carried by the current. It forms a branching colony on hard substrate.
Tank requirements
- Salinity (specific gravity): 1.024-1.026
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Carbonate hardness (dKH): 8-11
- Calcium: 400-450 ppm
- Magnesium: 1280-1350 ppm
- Phosphate (max): 0.1 ppm
- Nitrate (max): 15 ppm
- Minimum system age: 6 months
Placement and lighting
- PAR (placement zone): 0-50 PAR
- Water flow: medium
Because this coral does not rely on light, place it where feeding each polyp is practical — shaded overhangs, the underside of rock, or a low, accessible ledge. Moderate, varied flow keeps detritus from settling on the polyps but should not be so strong that it blows food away before capture. Bright light offers no benefit and can encourage nuisance algae to overgrow the skeleton between polyps.
Feeding
Dendrophyllia sp. is a non-photosynthetic coral: it does not host symbiotic zooxanthellae and obtains all of its energy from captured food rather than light. Each polyp must be target-fed individually with items such as mysis, reef-roids, amino-acids. Feeding is required several times per week — for many keepers daily — once the polyps have fully extended their tentacles, usually after lights-out or in response to food in the water. Skipping feedings leads to gradual tissue recession and loss of polyps.
Compatibility
This coral is passive toward neighbours. It extends sweeper tentacles capable of stinging adjacent corals, so leave generous spacing (10-20 cm) between colonies. Reef-safe with most fish and invertebrates.
Care notes
Difficulty level: expert. Reported skeletal growth in well-tuned reef tanks is approximately 0.1-0.3 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.
Propagating Dendrophyllia (Yellow Tube Coral)
Overview
Dendrophyllia is a genus of stony cup corals in the family Dendrophylliidae, with roughly 30 recognised species. Members inhabit deep ocean environments, recorded to depths of about 900 m. Branching forms produce tubular corallites; the yellow tube coral of the hobby is one such branching Dendrophyllia.
Reproductive Mode
As an azooxanthellate coral, Dendrophyllia derives no energy from light and depends entirely on heterotrophic feeding. In the family, most members capture food rather than photosynthesise, relying in nature on strong currents to deliver plankton from the reef above.
Fragging / Asexual Propagation
As a branching colonial coral, the yellow tube coral is propagated by dividing the colony: a branch or section bearing one or more corallites is separated and remounted onto rubble or a plug, then fed individually until it establishes. Each new piece must be kept fed to avoid decline.
- Select a branch or section bearing healthy corallites.
- Separate it from the parent colony and mount it on rubble or a plug.
- Place in a high-flow area to aid prey capture.
- Hand-feed zooplankton to each piece nearly daily.
Feeding & Conditions for Propagation
Husbandry is demanding because of the requirement for large amounts of zooplankton, most of it delivered by hand. Flow velocity strongly affects prey capture, so these corals should be placed in high-flow areas; without that combination of food and flow a frag will not establish.
Common Challenges
The defining challenge is the feeding load: the daily zooplankton needed both stresses the keeper's routine and adds nutrients that must be exported. Some species have appetites that daily feeding cannot fully satisfy, making long-term success the main hurdle to building up frags.