Massive Porites (Porites lutea) Care Guide
Porites lutea is a massive boulder-forming coral with tiny polyps, an extremely long-lived zooxanthellate reef builder listed as Least Concern by the IUCN.
Overview
Porites lutea is a massive stony coral in the family Poritidae, described by Milne Edwards & Haime in 1851. It forms smooth, hemispherical mounds or helmet-shaped colonies up to about 4 m across, with small, closely packed, thin-walled corallites of 1 to 1.5 mm. It is an extremely long-lived reef builder whose fossil microatolls indicate great antiquity.
Taxonomy
- Family: Poritidae
- Genus: Porites
- Scientific name: Porites lutea
- Authority: Milne Edwards & Haime, 1851
Habitat
The species occurs across the Indo-Pacific, from Madagascar and the east coast of Africa to Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Japan and northern and eastern Australia. It grows in very shallow water on reefs and can form structures in the intertidal zone.
Symbiosis and feeding
It contains symbiotic zooxanthellae that provide energy through photosynthesis; exposure to elevated iron can cause bleaching through zooxanthellae loss. In aquaria it is sustained mainly by lighting, with amino-acid supplements aiding its very slow growth.
Reef-tank requirements
- Lighting: 200-300 PAR (medium-high)
- Flow: medium
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- Specific gravity: 1.025-1.026
- Alkalinity (dKH): 7.5-9
- Calcium: 420-450 ppm
- Magnesium: 1300-1400 ppm
- Phosphate: below 0.05 ppm
- Nitrate: below 10 ppm
- Minimum tank maturity: about 6 months
Compatibility
It is a passive, reef-safe coral suitable alongside fish and shrimp. Growth is slow and reduced when the coral is stressed by higher water temperatures, so a mature, stable tank is recommended.
Conservation status
IUCN Red List: Least Concern (2014).