The Ponape Birdsnest is a popular member of the Birdsnest family of corals and is widely available in the reefing hobby.  It gets its name from its very thin branches that will, over time, intertwine with each other as they grow, giving it the appearance of a bird’s nest.  Its skin is light green and the growth tips are pink.  It has very small polyps that are not generally very noticeable.  Like other Birdsnest corals, it grows by branching but it will also encrust over the rockwork.  Its branches tend to have a slightly wider and more triangular shape than other types of Birdsnest corals.

Like many corals in the hobby, the Ponape Birdsnest coral is found in the Indo-Pacific region.  It is most common on exposed reef slopes where it can receive high levels of light as well as high levels of water movement.  While it is still sometimes wild collected, there is an extensive aquaculture industry and most of the coral frags available for sale in the hobby are captive grown.  Not only does this reduce stress on the natural reefs but also ensures that the corals are adapted well to aquarium life.  In a home tank, they should be placed on an exposed piece of rockwork where they will receive adequate levels of light and waterflow.  Because this coral can grow quite quickly, it is important that this is considered in the initial placement and that they are given lots of space to grow.

While Ponape Birdsnest are not as light demanding as other SPS corals, such as Acropora, they should still receive moderate to high levels of light.  A coral’s colour is a good indicator of whether or not they are receiving the right amount of light.  A coral that is receiving too much light may begin to turn white, whereas one that is receiving too little may begin to turn brown.  Like other SPS corals, they require moderate to high levels of waterflow in order to stay healthy.

Ponape Birdsnest corals are photosynthetic and can meet their energy needs by using the aquarium lighting.  They can be spot fed if desired, but this is generally not necessary and their small polyp size limits the amount of food they can utilize.  Most hobbyists find that this coral will grow quite well without supplemental feeding as long as the tank’s water chemistry is stable.

Fragging the Ponape Birdsnest is very easy, and because of how thin their branches are sometimes this happens by accident during water changes!  Simply cut or break a branch off the mother colony and glue it to a frag plug.  The new frag will begin to grow into a new colony in fairly short order.  Some reefers prefer to glue the frag to the plug horizontally to maximize the surface area that is exposed to the aquarium lighting.

The Ponape Birdsnest coral is a great choice for those looking to add a relatively easy to grow SPS coral to their reef tank.