Indo-Pacific and Red Sea, often in sheltered lagoons and on protected reef slopes
Water
saltwater
Care level
intermediate
Reef safe
yes
Lighting
Moderate to high
Flow
Moderate
Care
Pavona cactus is a stony coral that grows as thin, upright, twisting fronds, like a cluster of leaves or crisps. The tiny polyps sit in rows on both faces. Colonies are usually brown, cream or green. Placement: middle of the rockwork, with room to grow upwards and outwards. The thin fronds break easily, so keep it out of reach of digging fish and rockwork knocks. Light, flow and water: moderate to high light, moderate flow, and stable alkalinity, calcium and magnesium suit it. Growth: reasonably fast once settled. Neither LiveAquaria nor Top Shelf Aquatics lists this species; the figures are general guidance for the genus, not from a source. Selling: this is a CITES Appendix II coral. Frags grown in the UK can be sold freely; wild-collected or imported pieces must have been legally imported with CITES paperwork. Sources: none; general reef-keeping knowledge only. Checked October 2026.
Diet
Photosynthetic: zooxanthellae supply most of its food. Fine plankton or powdered coral foods can help but are not essential.
Breeding
Easy to frag by snapping or cutting a frond with bone cutters and gluing it to a plug.
Compatibility and tank mates
Peaceful with short tentacles; easily stung by LPS corals and harmed by leather corals, so give it space.
Last updated 8 October 2026. Community-edited care guide on Aquatic-Auctions.
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