ID Please(hope this is the right forum)

[loves saltwater]

I am sorry the pictures are not so good. During the day or when lights on it just a red looking coral.I have tried to take one with the lights on and one with the lights off. It is about 3 inches in length....Thanks in advance

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/4581/137150RC_Coral.jpg

With the lights off it has a tons of white hairy things that come out for filter feeding I guess.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/4581/137150000_0278.jpg

[JokerGirl]

It's a type of Carnation coral. You're very lucky that it's polyps are opening. They are non-photosynthetic and need a constant supply of phytoplankton to feed on.

Most of the time people can't even get them to open up let alone survive. They are right up there with Goniopora for having the worst survival rates in captivity.

You passed the hardest part... just getting it to open... now get it enough food :)

[loves saltwater]

I have been feeding DT's but it only feeds at night so I have to feed it before I go to bed at night after the lights go off

[JokerGirl]

It's a nocturnal coral much like Sun Corals are. They are actually soft corals, not LPS, but I'm sure you can probably train it to be out in the evenings like you can the sun corals.

You'll know if it's not doing well because it'll go limp then slowly dissolve away into nothing.

[loves saltwater]

I have placed it in a darker area of my tank hoping it would stay out but I have had no luck as soon as any of my lights come on it pulls in its feeders and stays that way till the lights go out. how can I coax it to be out in the evening ?

[JokerGirl]

Keep trying to feed it at the same time every evening, and it'll eventually start to come out more and more.

My sun coral comes out at about 5pm every day whether I feed it or not. It took about a month to get it on this time pattern though.

[dragonladylea]

Actually that is a Chili Coral - same family as the Carnations, however one of the easiest corals to take care of IMO. They do not like alot of light so shade it and feed it at night when the lights are out, I have had mine at least 4 years maybe longer it has survived extremely high nitrates, a tank leak, ph issues and still is a nice coral.

[Hormigaquatica]

Agreed- it is a Chili Coral. Of the nonphotosynthetic soft corals, it is one of the easiest to keep, though not without its challenges. Lighting doesnt really matter one way or another, though I would suggest keeping it in a dark spot just to discourage algae from overgrowing it (a common problem). They also seem to do best in a pretty strong current.

Feed it as often as you can, but at least 3-4 evenings a week. Youre not likely to keep it open all day, though Ive seen it happen. It is a nocturnal coral, and will be tough to break it of that. As dragonladylea said, just keep all your water quality in good shape, especially since youll be dumping so much food into the tank for it (cyclopeeze is great for those guys).