Yuma Coral

 

Common Name: Ricordea Yuma Mushroom
Order: Corallimorpharia
Latin Name: Ricordea yuma
Class: Hexacorallia
Family: Ricordeidae
Origin: Indo-Pacific
Category: Soft Coral
Care Level: Beginner
Temperament: Semi-Aggressive
Lighting: Moderate
Waterflow: Low
Placement: Rockwork
Colors: Various
Growth Speed: Moderate

 

 

What Are Ricordea Yuma Mushrooms?

The Ricordea Yuma is a unique member of the Corallimorpharia order. They grow as fleshy polyps and do not create a hard skeleton like LPS or SPS corals. The Ricordea Yuma is found in a wide variety of colour morphs, with green and purple being the most common and least expensive. It is very similar to the Florida Ricordea. However, the Ricordea Yuma tends to have alternating rows of large and small tentacles, whereas the Florida has only small tentacles. They are also both considered semi-aggressive, which is rare for mushrooms, and should be given space between them and other corals. They reproduce by longitudinal fission, which simply means that they develop a second mouth and then “pinch” into two separate polyps.

Ricordea Yuma Placement

Like other mushrooms, Ricordea Yuma prefer lower levels of flow. The flow should be sufficient to keep detritus from building up, but gentle enough that the coral is not blown around aggressively. If the flow is too high the coral may even detach and be moved around the tank and possibly sucked into a powerhead. Ricoredea Yuma are more tolerant of high light levels than other mushrooms and will do well in a variety of conditions although total shade and extreme intensity should be avoided. Since they do have a mild sting they should not be placed in direct contact with other corals. However, different colour variations of Ricordea Yuma can be placed next to each other in order to create a beautiful mushroom carpet.

Ricordea Yuma Names

This coral is known fairly universally as the Ricordea Yuma, but it is also sometimes called Watermelon Coral, Yuma Pacific Ricordea Yuma or Flower Mushrooms.

Ricordea Yuma Colour and Size

Ricordea Yuma are found in a huge variety of colours, which makes them so appealing and popular. They are sometimes known as Flower Mushrooms for a reason and it would be impossible to list all the various colours and patterns available. They grow to a maximum of about 3 inches in diameter.

Ricordea Yuma Growth and Fragging

Ricordea Yuma are considered a moderately fast growing mushroom that may grow slowly at first and then quicker once acclimatized. They reproduce by splitting, which means a single head will pinch at the mouth and then separate into two independent heads. They can also be carefully fragged by cutting . As long as a piece of the mouth is present in the new frag it will grow into a full head. It can take some practice to attach them to frag plugs, as they cannot be glued. One technique is to place the new frag in a low flow area of the tank with some rubble rock and wait for it to attach naturally. The rock can then be glued to a frag plug.

Ricordea Yuma Feeding

Like all mushrooms the Ricordea Yuma Mushroom benefits from periodic target feeding. A food such as Vitalis Soft Coral Food makes a good choice.

Water Chemistry

Ricordea Yuma Mushrooms require natural salt water parameters, meaning salinity of about 1.026, calcium levels of 450ppm, an alkalinity of about 8 and magnesium levels of 1400ppm. They are more tolerant of high nutrient levels than many other corals.

 

Dipping Ricordea Yuma

It is generally considered good practice to dip all new corals before adding them to your tank to prevent unwanted pests from being introduced. Ricordea Yuma can be dipped in a coral dip such as Two Little Fishies Revive Coral Dip.