Mycedium elephantotus (Elephant Skin Coral) Care Guide
Mycedium elephantotus is a laminar Indo-Pacific chalice coral with outward-pointing, nose-shaped corallites; common on sheltered reefs.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Mycedium elephantotus is a colonial stony coral grouped by aquarists among the chalice corals. Colonies are laminar or encrusting and bear nose-shaped corallites up to about 15 mm in diameter that point outward toward the colony perimeter, an arrangement that gives the surface its elephant-ear appearance. Costae form radiating ribs across the plate, and corallites can become elongate at the colony margins.
Taxonomy
- Family: Merulinidae
- Genus: Mycedium
- Scientific name: Mycedium elephantotus
- Authority: (Pallas, 1766)
Habitat
The species inhabits most reef environments protected from strong wave action across the Indo-Pacific and is reported as common. Coloration is typically uniform brown, grey, green or pink, with oral discs that may be green, white or red and distinctively coloured colony margins.
Aquarium care
- Temperature: 24-26 degrees C (75-79 degrees F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Salinity: 1.024-1.026 SG
- Alkalinity (KH): 8-11 dKH
- Calcium: 400-450 ppm
- Magnesium: 1280-1350 ppm
- Difficulty: intermediate
- Minimum tank maturity: about 3 months
Lighting and flow
As a chalice-type coral, Mycedium is kept under lower to moderate light, around 50-150 PAR; deeper-water forms tolerate even lower intensity, and direct high-intensity light should be avoided to prevent bleaching. Moderate to low, indirect flow keeps the plate clean while avoiding tissue recession caused by strong direct currents.
Feeding
Mycedium is primarily photosynthetic through its zooxanthellae. Its tentacles are typically extended only at night, when colonies can be target-fed small meaty foods such as mysis; chalice corals are slow eaters.
Compatibility
Chalice corals can be aggressive, deploying long sweeper tentacles that sting nearby corals, so colonies should be spaced well away from neighbours. The species is reported as reef-safe with fish and shrimp.
Elephant Skin Coral (Mycedium elephantotus): Propagation Guide
Overview
Mycedium elephantotus is a chalice coral that grows into fan-like plates or encrusting colonies, plating much like a Montipora cap and, with time, curling upward at the edges to begin cupping. It is recognised by inclined, nose-shaped corallites that always point toward the outside of the colony, with a central oral disk slightly larger than the outward-facing corallites. It is found in protected reef habitats away from strong current, often in caves or on rock walls.
Reproductive Mode
Mycedium is a colonial large-polyp stony coral that carries symbiotic zooxanthellae. As with chalice corals generally, sexual reproduction is by gamete release, while aquarium propagation is asexual division of the plate. The outward-pointing corallites and central mouth define which sections of plate can be cut into viable frags.
Fragging / Asexual Propagation
Plating chalices are fragged by cutting sections of the plate, ensuring at least one eye (corallite) per frag and avoiding cutting through an eye, and making sure each frag has a mouth to feed. After cutting, an iodine dip is advised because the exposed edges are prone to bacterial infection; frags are then glued to plugs to heal.
Conditions for Propagation
Chalices do best under lower-moderate lighting, around 100 PAR, with moderate to lower flow that still keeps debris from settling on the tissue. Stable parameters near reef values support recovery as the frag encrusts and resumes plating.
Common Challenges
The main challenges are bacterial infection of cut edges, addressed by the iodine dip, and stinging interactions with neighbors as the frag grows. Debris allowed to settle on the plate under weak flow can also trigger tissue recession during healing.