Lobophyllia flabelliformis Propagation Guide
Propagating the plate-like brain coral Lobophyllia flabelliformis (formerly Symphyllia recta): cutting the colony along its broad valleys with a band saw so each frag keeps tissue and skeleton.
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.