Pavona

Pavona for Sale

Pavona is an easy, fast-growing SPS that comes as thin upright fronds or as an encrusting sheet. This page has Copper Encrusting and Freak Hair Pavona, plus Hulk Leptoseris, a close relative. Everything is photographed in our Key West systems.

The two looks

• Cactus Pavona (Pavona cactus): thin, twisted, upright fronds with polyps on both sides and often a white edge.
• Encrusting Pavona (Pavona varians and others): spreads across rock in a sheet with polyps in short valleys. Big colonies can turn into plates or cups.

Pavona and Leptoseris belong to the same family.

Pavona care, in numbers

• Light: moderate. Encrusting Pavona varians levels off at about 110 PAR in measurements and starts to suffer above about 350. Cactus Pavona does well in lower light.
• Flow: sources range from low to strong. Moderate flow is a safe start.
• Feeding: optional fine plankton in the evening.

Spacing

Pavona puts out sweeper tentacles at night. Give it clear space from its neighbors.

How fast it grows

Fast, in most tanks. Cactus Pavona can fill a space quickly, so plan where it will go.

How it ships from Key West

Pavona frags 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 per box for qualifying Florida livestock and $50 per box elsewhere in the lower 48. A box holds 4 spots, so up to 4 frags ship for one shipping charge.
• Free livestock transportation: begins at $299 in qualifying livestock subtotal and covers shipping on the first box. Each extra box pays its shipping rate. WYSIWYG pieces count toward the $299. Dry goods do not.
• Box & Handling Fee: $20 per box, and it applies to every box, including on free-transportation orders. A fifth spot starts a second box, which pays its own shipping and Box & Handling 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

• Encrusting Corals: The Rock Painters
• Leptoseris · Encrusting corals · All SPS corals