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Little Shop of Coral

Green Toxic Hammer Coral (Euphyllia ancora / parancora) (A13)

Green Toxic Hammer Coral (Euphyllia ancora / parancora) (A13)

$70.00 CAD
$70.00 CAD
Sale Sold out
Size

Hammer corals are one of the most popular LPS in the hobby, named for the distinctive hammer or anchor shaped tips on their flowing tentacles. They come in both branching (Euphyllia parancora) and wall (Euphyllia ancora) skeletal forms and are available in a huge range of colours. Hammers are often considered the natural next step after softies and mushrooms, with branching specimens being slightly more forgiving than wall types.

Why we love it

  • Iconic hammer or anchor tipped tentacles that move beautifully in the flow
  • Available in branching and wall forms with massive colour variety
  • Branches into impressive multi head colonies in stable systems
  • A staple Euphyllia and one of the most rewarding LPS in the hobby

Suggested parameters

  • Temperature: 24 to 26°C (75 to 79°F)
  • Salinity: 1.025 to 1.026 SG
  • pH: 8.1 to 8.4
  • Alkalinity: 8 to 10 dKH (stability matters most)
  • Calcium: 400 to 450 ppm
  • Magnesium: 1250 to 1400 ppm
  • Nitrate: 5 to 20 ppm
  • Phosphate: 0.03 to 0.12 ppm

Care and placement

  • Difficulty: Easy to moderate (branching forms tend to be more forgiving than wall)
  • Placement: Lower to mid rockwork (give space for sweepers)
  • Lighting: Low to moderate
  • Flow: Low to moderate (enough to make tentacles sway, not blast)

Feeding

Hammers have a strong feeding response and benefit from regular feedings.

  • Mysis, brine, small meaty foods, or coral pellet foods
  • Target feed 1 to 2 times per week
  • Tentacles extend during the day and capture food readily

Compatibility and spacing

Hammers carry long, stinging sweeper tentacles and need significant clearance.

  • Several inches of buffer from non Euphyllia neighbours is wise
  • Generally tolerates other Euphyllia species (hammers, torches, frogspawn) better than non Euphyllia
  • Susceptible to brown jelly disease, watch for tissue recession and treat promptly
  • Clownfish may try to host in the tentacles, which can stress the coral initially
  • Reef safe with most peaceful fish (some fish may pick at tentacles)

Health and acclimation notes

Like all Euphyllia, hammers can be sensitive to large parameter swings. Drip acclimate slowly, give the coral time to settle into its placement, and watch for any signs of tissue recession or jelly like film, which may indicate brown jelly disease. Quick action with iodine dips or fragging is the best response. Branching hammers are typically more forgiving of fluctuations than wall hammers.

What you are buying

  • You will receive: 1 Hammer Coral frag
  • Mounted on a frag plug or small tile
  • For WYSIWYG listings: you will receive the exact frag shown. For non WYSIWYG listings: the frag will be similar to those pictured but each piece is unique.

Colour, pattern, and polyp size can vary between systems and may shift slightly during acclimation due to lighting, flow, and nutrient levels.

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LIGHT

LOW: Place coral at the bottom of the tank. Depending on the type, coral may need to be placed off sand and therefore mounted on a ceramic disc of piece of rock.

MEDIUM: Place coral at mid-range of the tank. Best placed/glued on top of a rock scape at mid-range height. 

HIGH: Place coral from mid range to just below water level. SPS coral are shallow growing so they require and are able to tolerate intense light.

FLOW

LOW: Most soft coral do well with a small, gentle pulse. There are certain corals that can even be placed in areas of indirect flow, meaning places aside a rock structure or set into a entrance to a cave style space.

MEDIUM: Many LPS types of coral prefer medium pulse current. Most Euphyllia or corals that have more tissue structure connected to their skeleton, don’t like to be in a high flow area like the direct flow of the wave pump.

HIGH: Similar to high light, SPS enjoy being in some heavy current. Most LPS and SPS that branch encrust or plate prefer high flow that simulates the top water waves.

SKILL

ENTRY: While some may say beginner level, "Entry" is a good term to be used when starting out in the world of corals and marine life. Prior to adding livestock, you want to ensure that your reef has the proper parameters including zero levels of ammonia and nitrite. Seeing traces of nitrate in your waters is a good sign - just keep them at a lower level of 2ppm to 10ppm. Maintaining correct temperature and salinity are a huge factor to stable parameters. Starting to monitor your PH, alkalinity, calcium and magnesium is a great habit to get into to keep a successful reef.

While some soft coral don’t require too much light, having a proper reef light that puts out the proper pars is very important. You'll also want to have a good amount of flow and protected rock areas, as placing corals in their happy spot is ideal for success.

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