Radioactive Green Dragon Eyes
Radioactive Green Dragon Eyes are considered by some to be the brightest Zoa available in the hobby. Its green polyps glow with an almost otherworldly fluorescence. Their skirt is a somewhat darker colour green with occasional hints of blue. They pair nicely with a bright orange zoa like Mickey D’s. Like all zoas, they grow as a colony of multiple heads connected by fleshy tubes that sit flat on the rockwork. They multiply by budding and are considered relatively fast growers if provided with favourable conditions.
Zoas are found in a wide variety of tropical and subtropical ocean environments. However, varieties with clearly designated trade names such as Radioactive Green Dragon Eyes are almost always aquacultured rather than wild collected. This helps to ensure both colour uniformity as well as has the added benefit of producing specimens that are well adapted to aquarium life. Green Dragon Eyes Zoas are best placed on rock islands on the substrate. This is because, like all corals, they have no “off switch” and will grow continuously. While these Zoas are undeniably beautiful, they can take over the rockwork if given the opportunity. Multiple smaller rocks with different coloured zoas can be placed together to form the classic “zoa garden”.
Radioactive Green Dragon Eyes are fairly tolerant of a variety of lighting conditions, but they should not be placed in very high light areas of the tank as this could cause the polyps to stay closed or even for the whole specimen to “melt”. They may prefer higher light than some other species of zoas but this is a matter of debate. Flow should be moderate, enough to keep the polyps from being covered by detritus but not so strong that they are blown around aggressively. For these reasons, zoa rocks are generally placed on the substrate.
Like all zoas, Radioactive Green Dragon Eyes are photosynthetic and have a symbiotic relationship with zooxanthellae algae. However, they can also be spot fed with a general coral food solution such as Reef Roids. This will increase their growth rate and may improve colouration. Zoas are one of the few corals that prefers more nutrient rich (dirtier) water and may grow faster in tanks with higher nitrate levels. Care must be taken, however, not to raise nitrates too high as this will have a negative impact on other coral species in the tank.
Due to their speed of growth, fragging zoas is common but is a bit of an art form. Since they do not have a calcified skeleton that can be cut, polyps must be scraped from the rock and glued to a frag plug or piece of rubble rock. This usually takes a few tries but is fairly easy once mastered. The fragged polyps will soon attach themselves to the plug and begin to grow a new colony. Due to the possibility of the zoas secreting toxins when handled, it is recommended that hobbyists wear gloves and eye protection when fragging zoas.