2017-12-21 Poll & Fact of the day - Black Coral

[Mark Shelly]

Black Coral is a form of Hexacoral. These usually have 6 tentacles and are a branching hard coral. There are about 280 species of them. Colonies of some are known to be over 4,265 years old. They often live in deep water. The flexible coral skeleton is black or dark brown. That is why they are called black coral. In Hawaii, the black coral is the official gemstone of the state. There, skeletons were harvested because they were thought to ward off evil or injury. Unlike many corals, they do not have zooxanthellae, which is not surprising for a deep water coral.

Here is a live coral


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DJsr4NaVjo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_hS_7C0_nQ

 

[Trio91]

I have always wanted one of these guys...

 

[njtiger24 aquariums]

cool