Cauliflower Colt Coral

Cladiella is a genus of soft coral that resembles a cauliflower, with short, rounded, knob-shaped lobes rising from a cream or whitish body. The polyps on the lobes are brown or greenish; with the polyps open the colony looks brown, and when they close the white body is revealed. Because of this sudden color change it is also called "blushing coral" in English. In the trade it may be sold under the same "colt" name as Klyxum; ask for the scientific name when buying. Some sources describe it as more delicate and harder to propagate than Klyxum.

• Moderate light (about 100–200 PAR) and moderate to strong, random flow.
• A solid surface in the middle zone of the rockwork, with 10–15 cm of clear space around it.
• Stable KH, calcium and magnesium; salinity 1.024–1.026.
• It closes up immediately when touched; handle it as little as possible during maintenance.

It is photosynthetic and gets most of its nutrition from light. Supplemental feeding is not required; fine phytoplankton or powdered coral food can be offered occasionally.

Like most soft corals, it releases chemical compounds into the water and can affect stony corals when placed close to them. A distance of 15 cm and activated carbon are sufficient precautions. It is itself vulnerable to aggressive, stinging LPS corals. It causes no problems with fish and the cleanup crew; some dwarf angelfish may pick at the polyps.