WYSIWYG Indonesian Lobophyllia (XL 7″)

WYSIWYG Indonesian Lobophyllia (XL 7″) is a fleshy large-polyp brain coral whose inflated tissue and color are best supported by stable reef conditions, modest light, and gentle indirect water movement.

Care and Placement

Fleshy large-polyp brain corals respond best to stable reef conditions. Give the coral a flat, secure position where the tissue can expand without rubbing against sharp rock or being pressed against the skeleton by direct flow. Acclimate gradually to the stated light range.

Lighting	Low to medium — PAR 50–150. Moderate, diffused light helps preserve vivid color.
Flow	Low to moderate — gentle, indirect flow so the tissue can inflate fully.
Placement	Sandbed or lower rockwork with space around it; the coral may swell well beyond its skeleton.
Aggression	Semi-aggressive — inflates large by day and may extend feeder tentacles at night; give it room.
Feeding	Primarily photosynthetic; offer small portions of appropriately sized meaty food after feeder tentacles extend
Care level	Intermediate
Water Parameters	Salinity 1.025–1.026 · Temperature 76–78°F · Alkalinity 8–9 dKH · Calcium 420–440 ppm · Magnesium 1300–1400 ppm

Keeping the Tissue Healthy

Keep detritus from settling in folds and valleys, but avoid a direct powerhead stream. The coral may inflate beyond the visible skeleton, so allow room for daily expansion and nighttime feeding behavior. Handle the skeleton rather than the living tissue whenever possible.

Consistency matters more than chasing a single number. Make lighting and flow changes gradually, keep alkalinity and salinity steady, and watch tissue inflation as the clearest day-to-day placement signal.

What to expect when it arrives

Acans arrive deflated with the skeleton visible between polyps, which looks worse than it is. Float the sealed bag 15 minutes, drip acclimate 30 to 45 minutes, and place the frag low in the tank with gentle flow. Most acans begin inflating within 24 hours and are fully puffed within two to three days.

Placement, and the light mistake

Acans burn under SPS lighting. Start low — sand bed or the bottom third of the rockwork — and leave it there. A deflated acan sitting under strong light is not going to adapt; it is going to recede. Flow should be gentle and indirect enough that the fleshy polyps are not visibly pushed around.

Feeding, which is the whole point

This is where acans reward you. Target feed with a small meaty food two or three times a week, pumps off for ten minutes, placing food directly on the polyps. A fed acan produces new heads at the frag edge within weeks. An unfed one can sit unchanged for a year and many keepers conclude the coral is slow when it is simply hungry.

Growth and fragging

A three-head frag that is placed correctly and fed regularly commonly becomes eight to ten heads within a year. New heads emerge at the margin and mature over a few months. Frag by cutting between heads with a band saw or bone cutters once the colony has spread past its plug.

Compatibility

Acans have short sweepers and lose most exchanges. Keep them clear of Euphyllia and chalices. They are also a favorite target for some angels and butterflies, and a colony that stays deflated in otherwise good conditions is usually being picked at after lights out.