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Pocillopora (from pocillum = small cup and poros = opening) is a genus of stony coral, which is counted among the small polyp stony corals (SPS = Small Polyp Scleractinia). They are found in the Red Sea and tropical Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. In Pacific South Sea islands such as Hawaii, they are among the dominant reef-building coral genera due to the absence of Acropora. Pocillopora show different growth forms, depending on their position in the reef, their branches vary in thickness to resist the force of waves - the species with thicker branches are exposed to more waves. The bumps on their branches are called verrucae. The color is often brownish to neon green or even pink.Pocillopora
A Very popular color variety is "Tricolor" which has pink tissue and green polyps with light colored polyp tips. The colored polyp tips and almost transparent tentacles are a good distinguishing feature for the genus. There is a danger of confusion especially with Seriatopora, but the difference between Pocillopora and Seriatopora is that in the latter the polyps are arranged in clearly visible rows - so as the name says "pores in series". It can also be difficult to distinguish them from Stylophora, as they have similarly structured polyps; however, as a rule, unlike Stylophora, Pocillopora are rougher in structure due to the presence of the verrucae.
Pocillopora possess zooxanthellae and feed on light. They do well with even medium-strength light and therefore do well in the fringes of the high-light zone. They are more resistant to higher nutrient levels than many other SPS and are therefore well suited as a first stock with SPS or for beginners, as they forgive mistakes more easily. For optimal coloration, however, low nutrient values are necessary, otherwise they will turn brown. They need strong current, because especially the finely branched varieties tend to die from below if there is not enough water movement - in this case the moving water column in wave simulation can also help to optimize the metabolic exchange.
