Flat Lobo Care Guide
Flat Lobo (Lobophyllia flabelliformis) is a LPS coral. Care covers 75-175 PAR, medium flow, reef parameters and feeding; intermediate level.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Flat Lobo (Lobophyllia flabelliformis) is a LPS coral in the family Lobophylliidae. Plate-like Lobophyllia (formerly Symphyllia recta) with broad valleys. Australian specimens have intense color.
Taxonomy
- Family: Lobophylliidae
- Genus: Lobophyllia
- Scientific name: Lobophyllia flabelliformis
- Common synonyms: Flabelliform Lobo, Flat Brain
Habitat
In the wild, Lobophyllia flabelliformis is reported from Indo-Pacific, where it occupies mid to lower reef slopes and lagoons (typically 5-30 m). The species adopts a plating growth form on hard substrate within zooxanthellate reef communities.
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): 0.03 ppm
- Nitrate (max): 5 ppm
- Minimum system age: 3 months
Placement and lighting
- PAR (placement zone): 75-175 PAR
- Water flow: medium
Mount this LPS coral on the lower or mid rockwork or on the sand bed (for free-living forms) where light is moderate. Strong direct flow can damage the fleshy tissue; aim for indirect, varied movement.
Feeding
Lobophyllia flabelliformis hosts symbiotic zooxanthellae and derives most of its energy through photosynthesis. Supplemental target feeding accelerates growth and supports colouration; commonly accepted items include mysis, reef-roids. Feed once or twice per week after lights-out, when polyps are extended.
Compatibility
This coral is moderately aggressive 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: intermediate. Reported skeletal growth in well-tuned reef tanks is approximately 0.1-0.3 cm/month. Propagation by fragmentation is straightforward for plating 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.
Lobophyllia flabelliformis Propagation Guide
Overview
Lobophyllia flabelliformis is a plate-like brain coral in the family Lobophylliidae. Reef Builders records that the corals formerly placed in Symphyllia were reclassified into Lobophyllia in 2016, so older trade names persist for this and related forms. It is a colonial Indo-Pacific reef coral built of meandering valleys and shared walls rather than separate stalked lobes.
Reproductive Mode
This is a colonial, not solitary, coral: it grows as a continuous skeleton whose corallites share walls, with the polyps seated in the valleys. Because tissue and skeleton form one connected sheet, the colony can be divided into pieces that each carry living polyps, supporting both asexual fragging in aquaria and sexual spawning on the reef.
Fragging / Asexual Propagation
Reef Builders states that most LPS corals need a band saw for fragging. On a closed, meandering coral like this one the cut is run down the broad valleys where the walls meet, taking sections that each include polyps with their skeleton. A coolant of home-aquarium water tinted light amber with iodine disinfects the cuts; each section is then dried and glued to a flat-based plug.
Conditions for Propagation
Reef Builders advises gently basting mucus off fresh frags; polyps extend within hours and the cut edges expand within days. Stable parameters, gentle flow and clean water support healing, while the heavy mucus characteristic of brain corals should be allowed to clear so it does not smother neighbours during the settling-in period.
Sexual Reproduction
As a zooxanthellate stony coral, Lobophyllia flabelliformis reproduces sexually by releasing gametes into the water column, where fertilisation yields planula larvae that settle and form new colonies. This broadcast route, separate from fragmentation, is the natural means by which the species establishes new individuals on the reef.
Common Challenges
Reef Builders cautions that cutting along the valleys of a meandering coral risks damaging the polyps that sit there, so the blade must stay centred. The genus is moderately aggressive and produces abundant mucus, so frags need spacing while they heal, and poor water quality slows recovery and promotes tissue recession at the cut edges.