POM POM XENIA

Question
Hello Jennifer,

I saw your reply to a SOFT CORAL question.  I actually have a question about XENIA :)

I'm planning on adding a stalk of POM POM xenia to my tank.  It's a 25g tank it's about 18'' tall, there are areas in my tank that are about 8 inches from the light.

My question is I read you recommended a 2x65W setup-however, I currently have the 1x65 from Corallife... my tank has been a fish only tank up until now!  I decided to keep one and only one coral and that'd be the POM POM XEnia--I guess I just have a ting for them!! :)

My parents won't condone me to get another lamp so my only hope is that the Xenia will be okay under the 65W :)

Please let me know, thanks so much.

Answer
Hi Dennis. Ahhh! You picked my favorite topic! Xenia are my favorite corals. I love the pulsing action its almost hypnotic. Anyway for your question. You may not have enough lighting for these corals. They can withstand moderate lighting but what you have would be more closely to the low side. Xenia get most of their nutrition from their zooxanthellae( form of algae that lives in their tissues). They need a good amount of light to keep this algae healthy. If you can get them, and place them as close to the light source as possible you may be okay however I don't want to say for sure. Xenia are also a little finicky. In some systems they thrive even if conditions are less then perfect and in other tanks they fail to thrive even if they water parameters are all in good order. They do not transport well or acclimate quickly. Tank grown specimens are easy to find for sale and are going to be a lot more tolerant of lighting conditions and water quality. Try to find a source of these. Ones taken straight from the ocean very rarely will do well in a tank environment.