Stalked Soft-coral

About

Found along the reefs of South Africa, Xenia crassa is a soft coral that belongs to a group well known for one of the more hypnotic behaviors you'll see in a reef tank. The constant rhythmic pulsing of their feathery polyp arms. Scientists still debate exactly why xeniid corals pulse, but watching it happen is reason enough to keep one. The colony grows in fleshy, stalk-like lobes topped with pinnate polyps that open and close in a steady, almost mechanical rhythm. Coloration tends toward cream, white, or pale brown, and the texture is soft and almost rubbery compared to stony corals. In the aquarium, this is genuinely one of the more forgiving soft corals available to reef keepers. It doesn't demand intense lighting or heavy flow, and it tends to expand and settle in without much fuss. Colonies can spread across rockwork fairly readily, so giving some thought to placement from the start is worthwhile if you don't want it colonizing a large portion of the tank. For someone setting up their first reef, Xenia crassa offers the visual reward of a living, moving coral without the steep learning curve that comes with more demanding species.