There are several options for feeding soft corals, and this article will discuss three of them: Phytoplankton, Sinking marine fish pellets, and Liquid food. AlgaGen is a company with products that are both safe and convenient to use. Their feeding cultures contain no dyes or fillers, and they are all made in a sterile environment. They also make their products using natural ingredients, such as spirulina and coralline algae.
Phytoplankton
Soft corals are primarily trophic creatures that depend on phytoplankton for nutrition. Some species depend only on phytoplankton while others rely almost entirely on the food provided by these organisms. Nevertheless, some coral species rely on the food in other ways, such as zooplankton and even the larvae of slow-moving invertebrate species.
Phytoplankton are microscopic organisms that feed on carbon dioxide, sunlight, nutrients, and trace minerals. They are also capable of living in the absence of light, but their primary purpose is to stay suspended in water. Although many species are capable of drifting in the water, their rate of sinking is negligible. Diatoms, however, rely on their ability to stay suspended in water due to their small size and density.
Various species of soft coral feed on phytoplankton. Some species of soft corals feed on phytoplankton, including zooxanthellae-free forms. Others feed on zooplankton and may be highly productive in flow-exposed oligotrophic reef waters. The abundance of phytoplankton in tropical oligotrophic waters may be several times higher than zooplankton, allowing azooxanthellate cnidarians to be highly productive.
Sinking marine fish pellets
If you’re looking to keep a beautiful collection of soft corals in your aquarium, try feeding your corals with sinking marine fish pellets. These pellets will provide essential marine oils and proteins, and are beneficial to all types of soft corals, including LPS and large polyps. The pellets sink slowly so that they don’t cause a choking hazard to the corals, and they fall on the polyps for easy feeding.
If you’re feeding corals, you may want to consider using sinking marine fish pellets or specially developed lps coral pellets. These types of food are easier for corals to consume than liquids. They also can be placed into an automatic feeder, which makes it easy for you to provide your corals with the right amount of nutrients. And because they don’t create a mess of liquids, you can easily place the pellets into the feeder to automatically feed the corals at the right time.
You can also use a combination of both types of marine invertebrate fish food. For example, you can feed your corals with plankton, but you should avoid feeding them with fish pellets during the day, because they are vulnerable to nibbling. Fish don’t mind being fed during the day, but don’t let your aquarium fish eat their food. So, if you’re unsure about which feeding method to use for your corals, you should first consult your aquarium manual.
Liquid foods
Several factors influence the nutritional needs of soft corals. Often, non-targeted feeding products contain unwelcome organic compounds. Such organic compounds may cause undesirable algae blooms and reduce the overall health of the coral. Moreover, excessive feeding contributes to the dirt buildup in the aquarium. To avoid this, it is important to feed your corals only at half of their recommended dosage. To ensure the best nutrition for your corals, follow the recommended dosage for each food.
Soft corals and Gorgonians can be aggressive feeders and select their food items based on their size. Generally, they prefer larger items like fish. Soft corals on the other hand, select their food according to the composition and size of plankton. The best foods for such corals are those with the right composition. If you are unsure, you can always purchase some pellets and place them in automatic feeders.
Phytoplankton is another food source that soft corals need. Seachem’s liquid Phytoplankton contains Thalassiosira weissflogii algae. It contains the right proportion of proteins, carbohydrates, and fatty acids. It also contains an essential vitamin for soft corals – ascorbic acid. Phytoplankton contains an excellent concentration of calcium and phosphorous.
