In an effort to preserve  our natural reef systems, many aquarists have begun to attempt to propagate certain marine livestock in captivity. This serves a dual purpose of easing the harvest pressure on our natural reefs, as well as increasing our level of understanding about the reproductive habits of the species we choose to keep.

Generally, mushroom corals (actually an anemone, but commonly termed "mushroom coral") reproduce both sexually and asexually. The focus of this article is asexual reproduction. In the wild, asexual reproduction generally occurs by pedal laceration. It has been observed that mushroom coral stretch their mass into the ocean current, in doing so, fragments of the polyp break off and are carried by currents to form a new child colony elsewhere.

In the natural environment, it is unusual that a particular fragment will find suitable substrate upon which to attach itself. In the controlled environment of an aquarium, this method can be employed with great success.

Of course, for any coral growth or reproduction to take place, aquarium conditions should be maintained at a pristine level. This means 0 ammonia or nitrite, and very low nitrate levels. Nitrate levels should be checked regularly, and kept low via frequent water changes, deep sand bed, live rock or a denitrator such as the DeNitrifier, by Midwest Aquatic Research (http://www.midwestaquatic.com).

The easiest method to propagate mushroom corals is simply to leave the mushroom attached to its chosen piece of substrate, and use a surgical scalpel or scissors to cut the head from the mushroom.

In about a week or two, the incision will begin to heal over. 

After the stem has healed over, make one complete cut down the center of the stem. It is important to make a complete incision through the coral in order to also dissect stem of the coral.

In two to three weeks, each half of the stem will begin to develop a complete head. So two complete animals will develop from the single coral.

The second method of mushroom coral propagation allows for faster reproduction, and the creation of a well populated "mushroom rock" rather quickly.

In this method, the head of the coral should be cut from the stem. As depicted in the following diagram.

It is important to leave the stem of the coral attached to the substrate or rock, because a new head will form where the old one has been removed.

The next step it to make several clean incisions through the head of the coral that has been removed.

Each piece of the head should contain a piece of the original stem of the coral. This will ensure that a new coral develops from the fragment.

These fragments should the be placed stem down on a piece of porous rock.

The rock should then be covered with nylon mesh, such as that used to hold filter media, and secured. This will ensure that the fragments are given time to adhere to the rock without being blown from it by a power head, or molested by other aquarium inhabitants. The mesh can be secured on the rock with a rubber band, or simply folded under the rock and secured by the substrate.

Leave the mesh in place for about 4  weeks. This will give the corals time to adhere the rock that is to serve as their new home.

After his period, remove the mesh. It is preferable to do this without removing the rock from the water, as the corals should be treated with care at this point. Also, take care when removing the mesh, as the coral may adhere slightly to the mesh. It is important not to dislodge the corals form the base rock. 

That's it. If your aquarium conditions are suitable, as we outlined earlier, each fragment will develop into a new coral. 

This method may be used to more fully populate a "mushroom rock", or transplant a new colony to another rock in the same aquarium, or in a new aquarium. 

If we take the time to propagate mushroom corals in this way, we can relieve some of the pressure on the harvest of its wild counterparts. We also create child colonies that have shown greater adaptability to aquarium life. This should allow future colonies spawned in captivity to thrive in an aquarium without having to go through a period of adjustment.

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