FAVITES CORAL CARE OVERVIEW

• LIGHT: MODERATE (100-150 par) is what we find best, although they can probably tolerate up to 200. It's important to keep in mind that it is far easier to damage coral with too much lighting so in our opinion when it comes to lighting, less is often more for LPS corals. You can learn more about Lighting and it's overall impact on your reef tank in our article Lighting and your Reef Tank

• FOOD: We don't feel that favites corals require any special feeding regimen. They will catch and consume most food particles in the water column. Like most corals they capture nutrients from the water and will do best when supplied a healthy amount of food. Our method is high import, high export. You can learn more about Feeding and Filtration in our article Feeding, Filtration and your Reef Tank.

• FLOW: MODERATE. Favites corals benefit from a moderate amount of water flow that keeps the coral clean and brings food to its mouths. That said it is always INDIRECT flow. Too much flow, especially direct flow, can cause damage to the corals tissue or an inability to capture food. You can read more about Flow and its overall impact on your reef tank in our article Flow and your Reef Tank

• DIFFICULTY: BEGINNER. This is a great coral in the hobby, and there are many aqua cultured specimens available. Favites tend to be decent growers and have a strong long term outlook in captivity. This does not mean every wild specimen will be able to adapt to captivity, but it does mean that many hobbyists have found success long term. Like with all corals, specimens have been seen to do well in captivity when the right combination of Food/Light/Flow and Filtration are achieved. 

• PRICE: LOW-MODERATE. Favites corals are decently popular among hobbyists. Often referred to as "War Corals" they come in many different patterns and varieties of coloration. Although more typically found in red/green varieties, you can also find them in purple/green, yellow/red, or even sometimes yellow/red/green (see fascination). Because of the wide variety of aquacultured specimens and the overall success in captivity, favites tend to be more fairly priced. As always, the specific coloration and size of the specimen will ultimately dictate the price.

• COLLECTION ZONE: Indo-Pacific

• SCIENTIFIC NAME:  Favites is a genus of stony corals in the family Merulinidae. Members of this genus are native to the Indo-Pacific region and their ranges extend from the Red Sea through the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific Ocean as far as Japan, the Line Islands and the Tuamotu Islands
  

• AGGRESSION: AGGRESSIVE. You would not want to place them too closely to anything that you don't want to get stung. Although sometimes they may appear peaceful, you never know when the coral will turn. This usually comes with size health and age. We recommend at least 3-4" away from other species, potentially more. You should monitor as it grows.

• NATURAL TEMPERATURE: 82 °F / 28 °C  although most corals can adapt and survive in temps as low as 77 degrees and as high as 84 degrees. You can read more about temperature and how it affects your reef tank in our article Temperature and your Reef Tank.

• PH: Recommend 8.0-8.4, we tend to run around 8.2-8.3 over 24 hours. You can read more about pH in our article pH and your Reef Tank

• NITRATE: 5-10, try to keep stable. You can read more about nitrate and our approach to maintaining it in our article Nutrients and your Reef Tank

• PHOSPHATE: 0.05-0.1, try to keep stable. You can read more about Phosphate and our approach to maintaining it in our article Nutrients and your Reef Tank

• ALKALINITY: Recommend 8-9 dKh. You can read more about how we maintain our alkalinity in our article Alkalinity, Calcium and your Reef Tank

• CALCIUM: Recommend 400-450. You can read more about how we maintain our calcium in our article Alkalinity, Calcium and your Reef Tank
  
  

More About Favites Corals

Favites corals are large polyp stony (LPS) corals. They have an encrusting base but usually grow forming a dome-shape. Favites corals are also known as "brain corals" or "closed brain corals." The corallites of a Favites coral form to create one fused/shared a wall.  Sometimes this can make it hard to distinguish between a Favites coral and a Favia Coral. (They look very similar, but the Favia coral will form two distinct walls with a visible groove in-between these walls instead of the one fused/shared wall like the Favites coral.)   We allow some grace in the identification of these corals as it can be very hard to determine in smaller specimens. They both require similar care, so it's okay if you aren't 100% which type you have right away. Favites corals appear in a variety of colors and patterns.

Caring for Favites corals is relatively easy, making them an excellent choice for both beginner and expert Reef Chasers. Favites corals require lmoderate lighting for best coloration combined with moderate water movement. We recommend 150-200 PAR. Bear in mind that many corals can be gradually acclimated to lighting beyond their normal range. Water flow that is too high can damage their fleshy polyps.

Through their symbiotic relationship with a photosynthetic algae, known as zooxanthellae, they receive many of their nutrients.  Favites corals benefit from targeted feeding of meaty foods like Mysis shrimp or brine shrimp. To maintain good health, calcium, strontium, and other trace elements should be monitored and added as needed.

When placing your Favites corals, please remember that Favites corals are known to be aggressive. They have long sweeper tentacles that can extend to sting other corals that get too close. Be sure to provide enough personal space for your Favites coral to grow and thrive.