Lobophyllia

Lobophyllia for Sale

Large fleshy lobes, each a polyp with its own mouth, joined at the base into a dome. A Lobophyllia is bigger and more sculptural than an acan, with deep folds between the lobes. Everything on this page is photographed in our Key West systems, and WYSIWYG listings are the exact colony you receive.

Lobophyllia, Symphyllia and what the names mean now

In 2016, a genetics study moved Symphyllia, Australomussa and Parascolymia into Lobophyllia. Sellers still use the old names to describe shape. “Lobophyllia” usually means lobes that stand nearly separate. “Symphyllia” means lobes joined along a groove. Care is the same for both. Wilsoni moved the other way, into its own genus, Australophyllia, and you will find it with our brain corals.

Feed them

This is the difference between a Lobophyllia that grows and one that slowly recedes. They have real mouths, one per lobe, and they take a chunk of mysis, krill or a soft pellet placed on the tissue. Turn the pumps off, put the food on, and give it ten minutes. Once a week is enough for most colonies.

Watch the base, not the top

Recession on a Lobophyllia starts at the bottom edge where the flesh meets the skeleton. By the time you notice bare white on the upper lobes, you have already lost a lot. Check the underside every few weeks. Recession there usually means the coral sits on rock that rubs it, or the flow is strong enough to wear the tissue.

Lobophyllia care, in numbers

• Light: low to moderate. They rarely need more than 100 PAR.
• Flow: low to moderate and indirect.
• Placement: on the sand or a flat rock low in the tank, with clear space all around. The lobes inflate to nearly twice their resting size overnight, and a lobo wedged between two rocks chafes itself raw.
• Spacing: at night they push out digestive filaments. Leave at least two inches clear, more if the neighbor is valuable.
• Water: stable. They start to struggle when nitrate climbs into the 30 to 40 ppm range.

Questions we get asked

How fast do they grow?

Slowly. That is one reason large colonies cost what they do and why few farms grow them.

Where do they come from?

Most Lobophyllia in the trade are wild-collected, much of it from Australia. Each listing names the source when we know it.

Mine is deflated after shipping.

Normal for the first few days. Keep it in low flow and do not keep moving it.

How it ships from Key West

Lobophyllia ship UPS Next Day Air on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only, so no box sits in a hub over a weekend. We ship to the lower 48. We do not ship to Alaska or Hawaii.

• Shipping charge: $30 for qualifying Florida livestock orders under 6 lb, and $50 elsewhere in the lower 48. The shipping charge is per order.
• Free livestock transportation: on qualifying livestock subtotals of $349 or more. WYSIWYG pieces count toward the $349. Dry goods do not.
• Box & Handling Fee: $10 per livestock box, and it still applies on orders with free livestock transportation. A box carries up to 6 lb of packed livestock. Heavier orders go out in additional boxes, each with its own $10 fee.
• Live arrival: if something arrives dead, photograph the animal inside the unopened bag within 4 hours of UPS delivery confirmation and send it with your order number.

Keep reading

• Lobophyllia: The Lobed Brain for the Sandbed
• Brain Coral Care: Trachyphyllia, Lobophyllia, Symphyllia and Wilsoni
• Spot Feeding Corals
• All brain corals · Acans · Open brains · All LPS corals