Common name(s): Brain coral, closed brain coral, favites, moon coral, pineapple coral, honeycomb coral, worm coral, star coral

Scientific name: Favites abdita

Family: Faviidae

Location: Indo-Pacific

Temperament: Aggressive

Tank Placement: Any level in the tank, commonly placed on the substrate

Water Flow: Moderate

Light: Moderate

Care: Closed brain corals are relatively easy to keep under the right lighting. They are good starter corals for a newcomer to hard corals. They are large-polyped stony corals (LPS) and contain the symbiotic algae zooxanthellae. Thus they are photosynthetic. Their corallites are somewhat rounded and share walls. These brains can be placed almost anywhere in the tank but most commonly are placed on the substrate. Obviously, avoid putting it right under a powerhead outflow. At night, these corals extend long sweepers which look like a mass of brown strings. Give your brain a wide berth when setting up your corals as they have a respectful sting.

Feeding: Favites are photosynthetic, however, they do acquire plankton in real life and should be given the same treatment in the aquarium. At night, it can be spot fed baby brine shrimp, Cyclopeeze, enriched brine or other small plankton.

Propagation: The coral can be propagated by placing it on a hard surface and striking it with a hammer and screwdriver or small chisel. It CAN stress the coral.