Let's talk about corals "touching"...

[BanjoBandito]

I have some general questions about coral placement, specifically what can touch? I'm under the assumption that hammers can touch hammers and frogspawn but not torches? Zoas together are fine but add a platy and no way? Acans of the same species can touch? Is there any hard and fast rule? I see some tanks just PACKED together and they seem to break the rules? Does anyone have any kind of guidelines?

 

[blaxsun]

I have zoas and palys touching (their choice - I placed them far enough apart). I know my hammers and torches do not like each other. Goniopra get along with other gonis, but don’t like alveopora or euphyllia. And my hydnophora will attack and kill anything and everything.

Generally I try to give everything a wide berth unless it’s two or more of the same kind.

 

[BanjoBandito]

I have some fireworks cloves growing in and around zoas, but my torch is getting so big it's starting to "wave" over my war coral when it's fully extended. I'm trying to pair things by like species. I'm concerned about my acans due to the recent "re-naming"...I'm not quite sure there. They look the same??? lol. Very scientific.

 

[shakacuz]

it is a general consensus that if in the same family, they could touch. in the cases of torches touching hammers/frogspawn - some people have had success, where some have not. this goes to say about any other family as well like montipora and acropora.

i try to have things spaced out to give them room to grow, and monitor if they touch. any signs of coral warfare and i move.