Lighting
Light is not the main energy source; place for feeding access and flow, not display brightness.
NPSAdvancedCare score 9/10
Carnation Coral
Dendronephthya spp.
Carnation Coral NPS coral guide for identifying bright branching soft coral, choosing low placement with moderate flow, and managing weak feeding response and tissue shrinkage when kept near Chili Coral and NPS Gorgonian.
Compare bright branching soft coral, care range, and nearby lookalikes while checking an ID.
Snapshot
Quick Care Snapshot
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Care score
- 9/10
- Placement
- Low
- PAR range
- 0-80 PAR
- Flow
- Moderate
- Aggression
- Moderate
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Minimum tank age
- 6 months
- Minimum tank size
- 30 gallons
Care note
This entry has low confidence or is marked for expert review. Treat the ranges as conservative starting points and compare them with your own system.
- Verify taxonomy before species-level SEO or care claims.
- Review advanced-care ranges against specimen source and aquaculture history.
- NPS feeding and nutrient-export guidance should be checked by an experienced reef keeper.
Images
Reference Photos
Photos are shown only when a source includes reusable license metadata. Always verify appearance against the coral in your own lighting and flow.
Primary reference: Nhobgood Nick Hobgood
Source: Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: Dereck Keats
Source: Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY 2.0
Photo: Diego Delso
Source: Wikimedia Commons. License: CC BY-SA 4.0
Ranges
Water Parameters
These ranges are approximate starting points from the coral database and should be adjusted to the stability and history of your system.
- Temperature
- 76-79 F / 24.4-26.1 C
- Salinity
- 1.025-1.026
- Alkalinity
- 8-8.8 dKH
- Calcium
- 400-460 ppm
- Magnesium
- 1250-1400 ppm
- Nitrate
- 2-20 ppm
- Phosphate
- 0.03-0.12 ppm
Care
Care Notes
Flow
moderate flow should deliver food and remove waste; dead spots are usually a bigger issue than low light.
Stability
For Carnation Coral, pair feeding with nutrient export; tissue decline can reflect starvation, water-quality stress, or both.
Variability
Carnation Coral requirements vary by specimen, aquaculture history, shipping stress, and tank maturity; use these ranges as starting points, not guarantees.
Feeding
Feeding
- Benefits from feeding
- Yes
- Food types
- mysis, fine planktonic foods, small meaty foods
- Frequency
- frequent small feedings, often daily or more, only if nutrient export can keep up
ID
Identification
Key features
- bright branching soft coral
- non-photosynthetic
- fine filter-feeding polyps
Common colors
- Pink
- Orange
- Red
- Yellow
Similar coral references
How to tell apart
Separate Carnation Coral from Chili Coral and NPS Gorgonian by checking bright branching soft coral, non-photosynthetic, and fine filter-feeding polyps in normal white light. Then confirm polyp structure, feeding response, branch tissue, and dependence on shade and food access; avoid using a trade name as the only ID evidence. For NPS corals, bright color is a weak ID shortcut; feeding response, polyp structure, and food access matter more.
Placement
Compatibility
Compatibility depends on specimen size, flow, growth, aggression, and spacing. Use these references conservatively and watch for contact over time.
Usually compatible with spacing
Use caution near
Avoid close placement with
Spacing recommendation: keep about 3 inches of clearance, then adjust based on extension and neighboring coral response.
Troubleshooting
Common Problems
Use these as troubleshooting checks, not a diagnosis. Symptoms may point to more than one issue.
Carnation Coral weak feeding response and tissue shrinkageOpen for symptoms, likely causes to check, and practical next steps.
Symptoms that may indicate it
- branches thin, polyps open briefly, and color fades without obvious photosynthetic cues
- Carnation Coral shows less normal extension, inflation, or feeding response than its recent baseline
- changes are localized rather than a confirmed single-cause condition
Likely causes to check
- insufficient fine particulate feeding, poor plankton delivery, or nutrient export limits
- recent placement, lighting, flow, or chemistry changes affecting Carnation Coral
- possible irritation from neighbors, pests, detritus, or handling depending on the coral group
Quick checks
- confirm Carnation Coral polyps can catch appropriately sized food
- increase feeding consistency only with nutrient export in place
- track nitrate and phosphate after changing the feeding schedule
Checklist
Common Mistakes
- do not publish Carnation Coral as beginner-friendly because it is a soft coral
- placing Carnation Coral before confirming bright branching soft coral and its spacing needs
- using Carnation Coral color or trade name alone instead of comparing it with Chili Coral
- changing light, flow, and chemistry together when Carnation Coral looks irritated
- ignoring consistent feeding access when keeping Carnation Coral
Compare
Similar Corals
Neighbors
Compatible Corals
These corals are usually compatible with spacing, observation, and stable conditions. This is not a guarantee.
Usually compatible with spacing
Duncan Coral
Duncanopsammia axifuga
- Category
- LPS
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Aggression
- Low
Usually compatible with spacing
Candy Cane Coral
Caulastrea furcata
- Category
- LPS
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Aggression
- Low
Usually compatible with spacing
Blastomussa
Blastomussa wellsi / Blastomussa merleti
- Category
- LPS
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Aggression
- Low
FAQs
FAQs
Is Carnation Coral beginner friendly?
Carnation Coral is not a beginner coral. It needs mature-system stability and careful observation, and the listed values should be reviewed before publication.
Where should Carnation Coral be placed?
Start Carnation Coral low in the tank or on the sand/low rockwork when its tissue form allows it. Use 0-80 PAR and moderate flow as a starting point, then adjust from tissue extension, color, and nearby coral response.
How should I feed Carnation Coral?
Carnation Coral is listed as an NPS coral, so feeding access matters more than display brightness. Use mysis, fine planktonic foods, and small meaty foods and the database frequency as a starting point: frequent small feedings, often daily or more, only if nutrient export can keep up. Watch polyp response and nutrient export together.
How should I place Carnation Coral near other corals?
Give Carnation Coral about 3 inches of clearance as a starting point. Its database aggression level is Moderate. Use caution near Favia, Favites, and Chalice Coral. Avoid close placement with Torch Coral and Elegance Coral. Compatibility is not a guarantee, so check contact points as colonies expand. For NPS corals, keep enough access for feeding and waste removal, not just enough visual space.
What should I check if Carnation Coral looks stressed?
Use this as a troubleshooting check. For Carnation Coral, branches thin, polyps open briefly, and color fades without obvious photosynthetic cues and Carnation Coral shows less normal extension, inflation, or feeding response than its recent baseline can indicate Carnation Coral weak feeding response and tissue shrinkage. Likely causes to check include insufficient fine particulate feeding, poor plankton delivery, or nutrient export limits and recent placement, lighting, flow, or chemistry changes affecting Carnation Coral. Start with these database checks: confirm Carnation Coral polyps can catch appropriately sized food and increase feeding consistency only with nutrient export in place.
What is the main long-term challenge with Carnation Coral?
For Carnation Coral, pair feeding with nutrient export; tissue decline can reflect starvation, water-quality stress, or both. The database lists 6 months as the minimum tank age and 30 gallons as the minimum tank size. For NPS-style care, feeding consistency and nutrient export need to be planned together.
Coral Identifier
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Compare bright branching soft coral, care range, and nearby lookalikes while checking an ID.
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