Acanthophyllia (Meat Coral)
Acanthophyllia deshayesiana · also called Acan Brain, Meat Coral, Acantho, Indo Meat Coral, Cynarina (older/related name)
A large solitary 'meat coral' that inflates into a balloon-like fleshy dome in spectacular rainbow, red, orange, and green colors. A hardy, slow-growing LPS centerpiece for the sand bed. Acanthophyllia was long lumped with Cynarina but is recognized as a valid genus again.
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Quick facts
| Size | Solitary single polyp; inflated fleshy mantle commonly 10-20 cm (4-8 in) across, large specimens to 25 cm. |
| Lifespan | 20–100 years |
| Social needs | solo |
| Native region | Western and central Indo-Pacific, primarily Indonesia (deeper soft-bottom reef slopes) |
| Origin | Old World |
| Climate | 🌴 Tropical |
| Water type | 🌊 Marine |
| Family | Lobophylliidae |
| Genus | Acanthophyllia |
Part of the LPS Corals
Large-polyp stony corals (brains, Euphyllia, Goniopora, Scolymia, Lobophyllia, Favites, Acan, Dendro, Octospawn) with fleshy polyps over a calcium-carbonate skeleton. Intermediate-care reef corals that appreciate moderate light/flow and direct feeding.
Habitat & space requirements
From the minimum an animal needs to be kept humanely, up to the ideal setup. Bigger is almost always better — minimums are floors, not targets.
Life & growth stages
How this animal changes through its life — each stage often has its own care, diet and space needs.
Color & pattern variants
Natural variants occur in the wild; selectively bred (man-made) variants were developed in captivity.
representativeRainbow Acanthophyllia →
The flagship trade grade: a single fleshy polyp banding multiple high-contrast colors at once — typically a red, orange, or magenta outer flesh ringing a contrasting green, teal, or blue oral disc. The most sought-after 'full spectrum' pieces hit reds, oranges, greens, blues and purples on one colony.
Tip: Place it on the sandbed (bottom) under low-to-moderate light (roughly 75–125 PAR) and very gentle alternating flow; meat corals inflate a large tissue balloon and will tear or recede in strong current. Target-feed a meaty frozen food about once a week once the feeding tentacles are out.
representativeOrange/Red Meat Coral
Solid vivid orange-to-red mantle, the classic and durable color form.
representativeGreen Acanthophyllia
Bright neon-green mantle, often with a contrasting mouth, that fluoresces strongly under actinic lighting.
representativeUltra Acanthophyllia →
A grading step below full 'Rainbow' — vivid two- or three-tone coloration (commonly a bright red or orange body with a green or blue center) that is brighter than a standard meat coral but lacks the full multi-color spread of a Rainbow.
Tip: Bottom placement on sand under modest PAR; if colors look washed out, lower the light rather than raising it — these come from deeper, dimmer water. Gentle flow only, and weekly target feeding.
representativeMaster Ultra Acanthophyllia →
Top-shelf grade reserved for the most intense, multi-color show specimens — saturated rainbow banding with chrome-like contrast, usually large (4-6 inch) display centerpieces.
Tip: Give a large master piece its own open patch of sandbed away from neighbors; the inflated polyp can sweep several inches and these are too valuable to risk against a sweeper or aggressive neighbor. Low light, gentle flow, weekly feeding.
representativeBleeding Apple →
A deep blood-red to apple-red fleshy polyp, often with a brighter red or pink center that gives the 'bleeding' look. The name is carried over from the red Scolymia/scoly trade, since this coral was long sold as an Indo-Pacific scoly.
Tip: Keep light low and flow gentle; reds intensify under bluer/lower light, and strong white light will bleach the apple coloration. Weekly target feeding.
representativeRainbow Speckled Acanthophyllia →
A rainbow-grade meat coral whose color isn't smoothly banded but broken into a speckled, freckled or tie-dye spray of contrasting dots across the flesh — prized for the unusual pattern rather than just the palette.
Tip: Sandbed placement under gentle flow; speckle patterns show best under blue-heavy reef light at moderate intensity. Weekly target feeding.
representativeGreen Ring Acanthophyllia →
A meat coral defined by a bright neon-green ring around the oral disc, contrasting against a red, orange or brown outer flesh — a clean, two-tone bullseye look.
Tip: Bottom/sand placement; the green ring fluoresces best under actinic-heavy lighting, so a bluer spectrum makes this morph pop. Gentle flow and weekly feeding.
representativeEternal Sun Acanthophyllia (WWC) →
A large (~5.5 inch) show-grade rainbow meat coral with sunburst orange/red flesh radiating into a bright center, named individually by World Wide Corals as a one-off centerpiece.
Tip: Sandbed centerpiece placement with its own clear footprint and gentle (low-to-medium alternating) flow; a piece this large needs room for full tissue inflation without contacting neighbors. Weekly target feeding once tentacles are out.
representativeLava Flow Acanthophyllia (WWC) →
A fiery orange-and-red meat coral whose flesh looks like flowing molten lava; WWC has also collected a cooler-toned counterpart sold as 'Arctic Lava Flow.'
Tip: Bottom/sand placement under modest light; warm orange/red tones hold best under a bluer reef spectrum at low intensity. Gentle flow and weekly feeding.
representativeUltra Rainbow Acanthophyllia (Orange & Blue) →
A collector-grade rainbow meat coral built on intense orange flesh against electric blue, often marbled with hints of green, pink or violet — among the brightest orange/blue contrast pieces in the trade.
Tip: Sandbed placement, low light, gentle flow; the orange/blue contrast is strongest under blue-dominant lighting rather than full white. Weekly target feeding.