Dr. Marzia Bo, Italien
Info
Antipathes grandis can form colonies up to 3 m high and more. The coral is widely branched, with long, distally oriented, irregularly arranged branches.
Since the coral depends on catching microzooplankton, it has up to 12 polyps per cm of body surface.
Antipathes grandis occurs in two color morphs, one white and one bubble red.
General:
Black corals feed on small planktonic organisms and live either in caverns/caves/shelters or at depths of up to several hundred meters.
Their skeleton is not made of calcium carbonate, but of a substance called gorgonin, which is very hard, horn-like, and proteinaceous.
There are said to be around 150 species, divided among the family Antipathidae into the genera:
Antipathes, Aphanipathes, Bathypathes, Cirripathes, Leiopathes, Parantipathes, Stichopathes.
Some species are/were harvested on a large scale for the jewelry industry, devastating their populations, as is the case with Antipathes grandis around Hawaii.
As with all animals without zooxanthellae, keeping them is not easy and usually leads to total loss; it is better to leave the animals in the sea.
Similar species: Antipathes caribbeana, Antipathes curvata, Antipathes elegans, and the sympatric Antipathes griggi.
Very special thanks for support and photo to Dr. Marzia Bo from Italy.
Since the coral depends on catching microzooplankton, it has up to 12 polyps per cm of body surface.
Antipathes grandis occurs in two color morphs, one white and one bubble red.
General:
Black corals feed on small planktonic organisms and live either in caverns/caves/shelters or at depths of up to several hundred meters.
Their skeleton is not made of calcium carbonate, but of a substance called gorgonin, which is very hard, horn-like, and proteinaceous.
There are said to be around 150 species, divided among the family Antipathidae into the genera:
Antipathes, Aphanipathes, Bathypathes, Cirripathes, Leiopathes, Parantipathes, Stichopathes.
Some species are/were harvested on a large scale for the jewelry industry, devastating their populations, as is the case with Antipathes grandis around Hawaii.
As with all animals without zooxanthellae, keeping them is not easy and usually leads to total loss; it is better to leave the animals in the sea.
Similar species: Antipathes caribbeana, Antipathes curvata, Antipathes elegans, and the sympatric Antipathes griggi.
Very special thanks for support and photo to Dr. Marzia Bo from Italy.
