Blastomussa reads as a mushroom colony at first glance — round, fleshy discs in reds and greens packed shoulder to shoulder — but under the flesh is a stony skeleton of individual tubes, one per polyp. That is the identification: mushrooms sit loose on the rock and can wander; blasto polyps are anchored for life. Blastomussa wellsi wears the big two-inch discs, merleti the smaller, denser ones.
Blastos are shade corals. In the wild they live on dim reef slopes, and in a tank the fastest way to upset one is to blast it with SPS-grade light. Low light, gentle flow, a spot low on the rockwork — and then leave it alone. Colonies add polyps slowly and steadily, budding new mouths around the edges.
Care at a glance
| Light (PAR) | 50–100 — shade tolerant, dislikes intense light |
|---|---|
| Flow | Low and gentle |
| Placement | Low rock or shaded ledge |
| Feeding | Light — occasional fine meaty food |
| Aggression | Very low |
| Difficulty | Easy |
The color palette overlaps with acans, and the two share tank zones happily — but acans want a little more light and carry real sweeper aggression, while a blasto threatens nobody. If you are filling the quiet bottom third of the tank, this is the coral for it; the species directory maps the rest of the shelf.
Blastos in stock now
3 in stock right now
One thing to know before you order: shipping and packing are charged by the box, not by the coral. A box holds several corals for the same $15 packing fee and the same overnight ride, Florida orders under 6 lb ship overnight for a flat $30, and livestock orders over $399 ship free. If this page puts one coral on your list, it is worth seeing what else belongs in the box — start with corals under $100 or the newest WYSIWYG pieces.
Our stony corals are either aquacultured at the shop in Key West under Florida Aquaculture Certificate #AQ0254072 or conditioned in our Key West systems before they ship, and the photo on a WYSIWYG listing is the exact animal that ships. Corals ship UPS Overnight every Tuesday and Wednesday. If you are ever in Key West, come see the raceways.