So what's SPS?

[Reefdude5]

I know that Sps stands for small polyp stony corals. But I was wondering, is there a big scientific group of words that stands for sps that is so complex that it can't be understood? Also, are they all extremely light needy, or are there some types that would do good in say a 120 gal (24" deep) w/ 2 175 watt MHs, 2 96watt full spectrum, and 2 96watt Actintic? Just hypothetically speaking of course! I want Acropora, but are there some acropora species that would do okay under these lights? What other kind of sps would do well?

[gregt]

Technically it stands for Small Polyped Scleractinia, but the term really has no scientific meaning. Scleractinia being the Order that "stony" corals are classified in. Really the term in the hobby is generic for "coral with a stoney skeleton that doesn't have big, meaty polyps".

[big t]

Most SPS corals would do really good under those lights. The thing is that some may not retain their coloration that they had under brighter lights. they should still grow a lot and can be really healthy. I personally have sps that grow at a slowish rate and most have nice color under VHO only. I plan to get some halides shortly tho

[Reefdude5]

By most do you mean evern acro? what sps are there that are pretty hardy?

[big t]

Hey Dude,
Well I even have Acro's! My purple table is the fastest sps coral that I have. I have a bali slimer, and a milipora also. I also have montipora digita and capricornis. These are all growing w/ vho only.

[Reefdude5]

Thanks Tom, that gives me hope!!!

[tdwyatt]

Funny, SPS really isn't known as a term in the literature. Danny Gleason is a MB from GA Southern (he is originally from the U of Houston) that spoke this year at MACNA in Louisville on coral and their relationships with Zooxanthellae. In discussions with several hobbyists the term kept coming up, later that evening when Mike (might have been ASmith, not sure now) asked him a question about SPS corals, he asked us as a group, "Just what are SPS corals?"

...Very telling about the chasm between the hobby and the scientific community. I see several articles that refer to polyp diameter as a means of discerning between the relative dependance on heterotrophic feeding, but that is about the gist of any differentiation in the literature.

[MyReef]

Whatever you do don't say the term SPS around Eric Borneman....whew...he will look at you and ask you what the term means. LOL He did that at a meeting last year to someone...quite comical, but.....too broad in his terms.

[tdwyatt]

LOL!!! Eric's favorite baited trap!!! Seems that he wouold use this about once a month back when AOL still had a decent BBS for reefs, the MACO MB coral class took care of that up front!

Heh heh heh!!!