Emma Wilson
Mushroom corals, also known as corallimorphs, are a great choice for beginner aquarists as they are easy to care for and can be fragged or will reproduce on their own. They are hardy and can survive in low-light conditions. When fragging mushroom polyps, it is important to wear safety goggles and gloves as they can release a chemical called palytoxin which can be dangerous. The process involves using a sharp blade or scalpel to cut through the centre of their mouth. It is recommended to rinse the frags to remove the mucus before placing them in a holding bath of aquarium water. While fragging, you will notice a lot of mucus and the white filaments of the animal's gut, which can be discarded to leave the quartered disc behind.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Safety precautions | Wear safety goggles and gloves. Make sure you don't have any open cuts exposed. |
| Lighting | Mushroom polyps thrive in low to moderate light intensity. In lower light environments, the individual polyps stretch upward in the water column, creating a mushroom-like appearance. |
| Location in the tank | Mushroom corals do best in the lower region of the tank, largely the bottom 25%. |
| Feeding | Each polyp has a mouth and is capable of ingesting small meaty foods. |
| Fragging process | Use a scalpel or a blade to cut the mushroom coral through the center of its mouth. Rinse the frags to remove the mucus before placing them in another holding bath of aquarium water. |
| Attaching to rock/substrate | It can be tricky to get mushrooms to attach to the rock/substrate. Using rubble in a small plastic container has been shown to be successful. |
| Overgrowth prevention | Isolate mushrooms to solitary "islands" of rockwork to limit their chances of moving to adjacent rockwork and decorations. |
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What You'll Learn
- Safety precautions: Wear safety goggles, gloves, and ensure no exposed cuts
- Tools: Use a scalpel, blade, or razor blade to cut through the centre of the mouth
- Isolation: Separate mushroom polyps to solitary islands of rockwork to limit overgrowth
- Regeneration: Leave a small piece of the central oral cavity to optimise growth
- Attachment: Use rubble in a small plastic container to get mushrooms to attach to the substrate
Safety precautions: Wear safety goggles, gloves, and ensure no exposed cuts
Safety should always be a priority when fragging mushroom polyps. It is crucial to wear safety goggles, gloves, and ensure no exposed cuts on your body. This equipment is not optional; it is vital to take these safety precautions.
Mushroom corals can release a chemical called palytoxin when stressed. Palytoxin can enter the body through direct contact with the skin or eyes and can also become aerosolized, so wearing eye protection and a dust mask is necessary. In addition, some corals, when damaged, can release chemicals into the water, so it is best to frag them in a container separate from your main tank.
Before you begin, set up your workstation with all the necessary tools laid out, so the cutting and mounting process is logical. The more thought you put into the preparation, the better your frags will turn out.
After cutting the mushroom polyps, you will notice a large amount of mucus and the white filaments of the animal's gut. It is a good idea to rinse the frags to remove the "goo" before placing them in another holding bath of aquarium water.
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Tools: Use a scalpel, blade, or razor blade to cut through the centre of the mouth
When fragging mushroom polyps, it is important to use the right tools. Using a scalpel, blade, or razor blade, you can cut through the centre of the mouth of the mushroom coral. This technique is suitable for soft corals like mushroom polyps, which have short stalks with broad-headed polyps that grow close to the rockwork.
Firstly, locate the mushroom polyp you want to frag. It is recommended to pick one of the largest polyps. You can use a scalpel, which is a precise tool designed for surgeries and dissections, or a razor blade, which is great for quick and steady slicing motions. Both tools can be purchased from farm supply stores or medical supply stores. When using a scalpel, ensure it is sterile and has a sturdy handle to make clean cuts. Hold the tool of your choice flat along the rock and gently slip it underneath the mushroom cap.
Slice the mushroom horizontally across the stalk, cutting the cap off while leaving the foot or stalk attached to the rock. Don't worry if you only manage to cut off a portion of the cap, as even a small piece of the mushroom should work fine for fragging. You may observe some white stringy matter and brown liquid seeping out—this is normal and the coral should recover and multiply.
If you successfully decapitate the mushroom, you can further slice it into two, three, or four pieces, depending on your preference. This process will result in multiple fragments that can be used for fragging. It is important to wear gloves, eye protection, and a dust mask during the cutting process to ensure your safety.
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Isolation: Separate mushroom polyps to solitary islands of rockwork to limit overgrowth
Mushroom polyps are a large and varied group of corallimorpharians that are quite popular with marine aquarists due to their multitude of colours, patterns, iridescent and fluorescent hues, ease of keeping, and their willingness to reproduce. They are commonly known as mushroom corals or mushroom rocks.
Mushroom corals can be fragged by using a sharp blade and cutting them directly through the centre of their mouth. However, this method has a lower success rate compared to other fragging methods.
To limit overgrowth, mushroom polyps can be isolated to solitary "islands" of rockwork, reducing their chances of spreading to adjacent rockwork and decorations. This method takes advantage of the mushroom polyps' tendency to avoid attaching to sand. While this method works to some extent, it is important to regularly check for detached polyps and remove them to prevent them from settling and increasing in size and number.
To remove detached polyps, you can use a firm-bristled tool to brush them into a gooey substance, ensuring that as much of the tissue as possible is removed with a siphon. Alternatively, you can use kalk paste, which is applied to the desired area for 20-30 minutes before being sucked off with a siphon hose, potentially requiring a second application.
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Regeneration: Leave a small piece of the central oral cavity to optimise growth
Mushroom corals are hardy and can be easy to frag. However, it is important to note that fragging corals for the first time can be stressful and overwhelming, and mushrooms can be dangerous to work with. It is recommended that you do not start with this species.
When fragging mushroom polyps, it is important to wear safety goggles and gloves, and ensure that you do not have any open cuts exposed. This is because corals can release a chemical called palytoxin, which can be extremely harmful and even cause death in extreme circumstances.
To optimise growth, it is recommended to leave a small piece of the central oral cavity in each frag. This can be done by using the oral cavity as a starting point for each cut and leaving some tissue behind in each segment. The mushrooms will regenerate from these small pieces of tissue. You can cut the disc into quarters, for example, and rinse the frags to remove the mucus and "goo" before placing them into another holding bath of aquarium water.
Mushroom corals have a natural ability to survive and prosper from physical damage. They can be fragged by using a sharp blade and cutting them directly through the centre of their mouth. This method has a lower success rate than most other fragging methods, but it can be a way to separate two mushroom heads from one another.
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Attachment: Use rubble in a small plastic container to get mushrooms to attach to the substrate
Mushroom corals are generally easy to keep, but fragging them can be challenging and sometimes dangerous. One of the reasons to frag mushrooms is to prevent overgrowth, as they tend to spread rapidly and attach to adjacent rockwork and decorations. To avoid this, you can isolate mushrooms to solitary "islands" of rockwork, limiting their chances of attaching to other surfaces.
If you want to attach mushrooms to a specific substrate, one method is to use rubble in a small plastic container. Here's a step-by-step guide:
- Choose a small plastic container made of good-grade plastic.
- Create small holes in the container to allow for gentle water flow and prevent stagnant water.
- Use a plastic clip to hold the container in place, such as in a corner of your tank, to prevent it from sinking.
- Place rubble, such as rocks or substrate, into the plastic container.
- Add the mushroom polyp to the container.
- Over time, the mushroom will attach to the rubble.
- Once the mushroom is attached, you can stick the rubble with the attached mushroom to the desired location in your tank.
It's important to note that fragging mushrooms involves cutting them in a life-threatening manner. Therefore, it's recommended to wear protective gear, such as latex gloves and facial protection. Additionally, some mushrooms produce a large amount of slime, making it challenging to attach them to a substrate using glue.
When choosing a substrate for your mushrooms, it's crucial to select one that matches their specific preferences. Different species of mushrooms have different substrate requirements. Generally, a good substrate is dense in woody, fibrous materials like lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose, which provide carbon as the main food source for the mushroom's mycelium. The substrate should also contain a small amount of magnesium, potassium, calcium, sulfur, and phosphorus.
Some common substrates for growing mushrooms include straw, hardwood sawdust, cardboard, and wood chips or sawdust from specific tree species. For example, you can use coarse oak sawdust, oak wood chips, and millet and rice bran in a heat-resistant plastic bag. Additionally, you can pasteurize straw by cutting it into small pieces and submerging it in 160-degree Fahrenheit water for an hour before draining and inoculating it with mushroom spawn.
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Frequently asked questions
It is important to wear safety goggles and gloves, and ensure that you do not have any open cuts exposed. The corals can release a chemical called palytoxin which can be dangerous, and in extreme cases, even cause death.
A sharp blade, such as a scalpel or razor blade, can be used to cut through the centre of the polyp's mouth. Fragging scissors can also be used for cutting.
Mushroom polyps are hardy and can survive fragging. However, the success rate of this method is lower than most other fragging processes.
It is recommended to provide lower-intensity lighting and moderate levels of flow. You should also have a holding bath of aquarium water ready to rinse the frags and remove the mucus and white filaments.
Fragging is done to control the growth of the coral, prevent different corals from coming into contact, and to sell, trade, or place frags in different tanks.
