Acropora coral

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Staghorn / Table Acropora (growth forms) →

Natural growth morphologies range from open branching 'staghorn' to flat horizontal 'tables' and bushy 'bottlebrush' forms depending on species and conditions.

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Green Slimer (Acropora yongei) →

A bright neon-green encrusting/branching staghorn-type acro, famously fast-growing and forgiving. The classic 'starter SPS' for new reefers.

Tip: Use this as your acro test piece before buying expensive colonies — give high flow and PAR 200-300, and if the Slimer thrives for a few months your tank is ready for pricier acros.

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Tricolor / Tricolor Valida (Acropora valida) →

A classic acro with green body, purple/blue branch tips and contrasting yellow-tipped corallites. A long-standing hobby staple known for hardiness among acros.

Tip: Mount in strong turbulent flow to keep detritus off the branches — valida tolerates a range of light but needs vigorous flow to prevent algae and tissue death in the branch crotches.

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Pink/Purple Stylophora-tip 'Strawberry Shortcake' (Acropora microclados) →

A pink-bodied tabling acro with blue corallites, one of the most iconic and demanding named acros in the trade. Notorious for needing high, stable light to hold its pink.

Tip: Place high under high PAR (250-350) with intense flow and ultra-stable alk — 'SSC' browns out or RTNs at the first nutrient or alkalinity swing, so dose consistently and quarantine for AEFW.

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Red Planet (Acropora millepora) →

A milli with a green body and striking red-pink corallites that 'pop' like planets across the surface. A staple of high-end frag collections.

Tip: Millepora demands strong steady flow from multiple directions and high light to keep the red corallites saturated — stagnant spots cause patchy tissue loss between the corallites.

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Bali/German 'Slimer' & Staghorn forms (Acropora formosa/muricata) →

Open-branched staghorn acros in blue, purple, or brown, among the fastest-growing and most beginner-tolerant of the genus. Often the 'frame' coral for an SPS-dominated aquascape.

Tip: Give these room to grow — staghorns extend branches fast and will shade and overtake slower acros, so leave generous space and prune/frag the tips to control the colony.

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Strawberry Shortcake (SSC) Acropora →

An Acropora microclados with a pink-to-red body and contrasting blue or white polyps/tips, resembling pink frosting with sprinkles.

Tip: Needs intense light (PAR 300+) and strong flow to keep the pink saturated; insufficient light turns it brown, too much can bleach the tips.

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Red Dragon Acropora →

An Acropora carduus ('deepwater'-type) with a deep red/maroon body and bright green polyps, growing into a fast, bushy thicket.

Tip: Demands high PAR and strong flow to deepen the red; under weak light it browns out quickly. Keep alkalinity rock-steady to avoid tip burn.

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Pink Lemonade Acropora →

An Acropora with a soft pink body and yellow/green polyps, evoking the pink-lemonade color pairing.

Tip: Strong light and flow bring out both the pink body and yellow polyps; lower light washes it toward dull tan.

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Tierra del Fuego (TDF) Acropora →

A colorful Acropora with a fiery red/orange-to-violet body and contrasting blue or green polyps and tips; coloration shifts toward violet under stronger light.

Tip: High light maintains the fire/violet color; pair with strong turbulent flow and stable parameters.

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Pikachu Acropora →

A yellow-bodied Acropora (commonly identified as A. microclados, sometimes A. anthocercis) with contrasting blue or purple polyps, named for its Pikachu-yellow coloration.

Tip: Give high light and turbulent flow to hold the electric yellow body; it prefers exposed, well-lit placement.

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Strawberry Shortcake →

A classic tabling/branching Acropora with a neon green-to-blue base and bright pink-to-red corallites and polyps that pop against it.

Tip: Give it high light (PAR ~350-450) and strong flow up in the rockwork; the pink corallites color up best under intense lighting.

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WWC Red Shortcake →

An Australian Shortcake-type Acropora that develops baby-blue base pigments with pink branch stems, corallites and pink-tentacled polyps.

Tip: Mount high under strong light and brisk flow; the blue base and pink contrast intensify with higher PAR.

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Oregon Tort →

A deep, uniform navy-blue *Acropora tortuosa* with tubular, irregular radial corallites and a notably slow, dense growth habit — often called the bluest acro you can buy.

Tip: A slow grower that holds its blue best under moderate-to-high light; give it a stable spot with strong flow and be patient (it speeds up once established).

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Miyagi Tort →

A tortuosa-type Acropora with deep blue-to-violet/purple branches, bright neon green polyps and icy pastel tips.

Tip: Holds its blue/violet color best under high light; place high with strong, turbulent flow for tight branching and clean axial tips.

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GARF Bonsai →

A compact, twiggy 'bonsai' Acropora (most often considered *Acropora valida*) with blue-violet branches and neon green polyps, named for its dense, miniature growth form.

Tip: Grows best in moderate-to-high light (PAR ~200-250) and moderate-to-high flow; acclimate carefully and leave it put, as it can take months to resume normal growth after a move.

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Cotton Candy Tenuis →

A pastel *Acropora tenuis* in soft pink-and-blue 'cotton candy' tones with contrasting corallites.

Tip: Place high under strong light and flow; the pastel pinks and blues hold best under intense, stable lighting.

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Vivid's Bali Shortcake →

A Bali-sourced Shortcake-type *Acropora latistella* with purple/blue branches, yellow-green growth tips and pink/rosy corallites — a Vivid Aquariums grow-out of the Bali Shortcake color form.

Tip: Mount on an exposed ledge with moderate-to-high flow and bright light (PAR ~350-450) to bring out the tricolor contrast.

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Named designer acros (e.g. ORA, Tyree, WWC morphs) →

Aquacultured, line-grown colour selections with hobby trade names (e.g. 'Strawberry Shortcake', 'Walt Disney', 'Red Dragon') chosen for vivid colour and grown out as frags.

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Walt Disney (Acropora tenuis) →

A legendary multi-color tenuis (pink/green/blue/yellow speckling) that became one of the highest-value named acros in the hobby. Almost all pieces in the trade are maricultured/fragged from famous mother colonies.

Tip: Acclimate light very slowly and keep nutrients in a tight low-but-not-zero range — WD shows its full rainbow only under high-end blue-heavy LED/T5, and bottomed-out nutrients pale it to white.

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Garf Bonsai (Acropora sp.) →

A famous hobby-line bonsai-form acro with pink polyps on dense compact branches, propagated within the hobby for decades. Valued as a hardy 'collector' acro that took to captive conditions well.

Tip: Its dense branching traps detritus — aim strong intermittent (gyre/wave) flow directly through the colony and blow it off during maintenance to prevent the inner branches from browning.

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Oregon Tort (Oregon Blue Tortuosa) →

An Acropora tortuosa famous for its deep true-blue branches, forming a dense bushy colony — one of the great workhorse 'gateway SPS' acros.

Tip: Adaptable but colors best high in the tank under strong light and flow; an excellent first acro because the blue holds across a range of conditions. Slow to start, then faster once established.

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Rainbow Tenuis →

An Acropora tenuis displaying a blend of green, yellow, pink, and blue across the body and tips — a true multicolor tenuis.

Tip: High light and turbulent flow near the top of the tank; tenuis types are relatively forgiving acros, but the full rainbow only shows under strong, stable lighting.

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Cali Tort (California Blue Tortuosa) →

An Acropora tortuosa with bright blue to blue-green corallites and branches, forming a tight, branchy colony.

Tip: Hardy and fast under strong SPS lighting and flow; like the Oregon Tort it's a great early acro that holds color across conditions.

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Jason Fox Homewrecker / Miyagi Tort →

Jason Fox signature acros: 'Homewrecker' is a brilliant electric-green-and-purple Acropora tenuis, and the 'Miyagi Tort' is a teal-green tortuosa with blue tips.

Tip: Top-third placement under high PAR and strong flow; these vendor pieces color up best in mature, stable SPS systems.

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Pink Cadillac Acropora →

A dark-pink Acropora with yellowish undertones and brighter pink polyps, forming a sturdy, fast-growing colony — an 'OG' collector acro.

Tip: High light is essential to keep the pink from fading to brown; strong flow and stable alkalinity prevent tissue recession.

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Walt Disney →

A legendary *Acropora tenuis* with a green base, yellow-orange polyps, orange-to-pink radial corallites and bright blue axial growth tips, often described as a living rainbow across the colony.

Tip: Place high in the tank under strong, blue-heavy light (PAR ~350-450) with turbulent flow. The rainbow colors pop hardest under heavy actinic/blue spectrum; under plain daylight it looks comparatively plain.

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Jason Fox Homewrecker →

The infamous neon *Acropora tenuis* that helped launch the bright-tenuis craze, glowing neon green with blue tips and bright neon pink corallites.

Tip: Wants the upper third of the tank at PAR ~300-400 with moderate-to-high turbulent flow and heavy blue light to hold its neon colors.

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Tyree Pink Lemonade →

A contrasting Acropora with lemon-yellow to neon green branches and bright pink polyps.

Tip: A relatively slow grower; give it moderate-to-high light and flow to bring out the yellow branches and pink polyps, and be patient as it establishes.

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Jackson's Rainbow Tenuis →

A blue *Acropora tenuis* that developed striking red polyps and pink corallites over generations of captive growth.

Tip: Colors up best under intense lighting (the original showed its best red under 20K Radium metal halides at PAR ~500-600); give high light and strong flow up high, and allow time for the red/pink corallites to emerge.

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Red Planet →

A tabling Acropora with a metallic green base and deep red-to-pink corallites and polyps, with light pink-to-white new growth.

Tip: Mount up high for strong light and flow; the red corallites darken and the green base brightens under high PAR.

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Hawkins Echinata →

A blue-and-green bottlebrush Acropora long sold as an 'echinata,' with delicate axial growth and bright bluish corallites.

Tip: Under lower light the blue and green intensify; under high light it grows faster but turns more monochrome, so dial light to taste with strong flow.

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ORA Pearlberry →

A delicate branching Acropora with a pearlescent white-to-lavender background, greenish corallites and lavender tips that can fluoresce under actinic light.

Tip: Give it bright light and place it high with moderate-to-strong flow; under good conditions it grows quickly. Keep parameters stable as it establishes.

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JF Fox Flame →

A fiery Jason Fox Acropora in red, pink and green tones with yellow growth tips.

Tip: Wants medium-to-high light and high flow; note that too-high PAR can make the yellow tips fade and brown the base, so dial light to keep the colors.

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CC Pink Highlighter Tenuis →

A Cherry Corals *Acropora tenuis* in a glowing highlighter-pink with green-blue and purple accents, fluorescing intensely under blue light.

Tip: Place high under heavy blue-spectrum light and strong flow to maximize its highlighter-pink fluorescence.