Duncan Coral Care Guide: Easy LPS With Flowing Tentacles

If you want an LPS coral that extends its tentacles throughout the day and grows at a pace you can actually see, the Duncan coral deserves a spot on your shortlist. This duncan coral Duncanopsammia care guide covers everything from placement to feeding, drawing on the hands-on experience we have built at Gensou Aquascaping Singapore over more than twenty years in the hobby. Duncanopsammia axifuga is native to Australian waters and has become a staple of the Singapore reef scene thanks to its hardiness and undeniable charm.

What Makes Duncan Coral Special

Duncan corals produce long, flowing tentacles from a branching stony skeleton, giving them an appearance that sits somewhere between a soft coral and a classic LPS. Each polyp is relatively large — around 2 to 3 cm across when fully extended — and colonies multiply by budding new heads from the base and along the branches. A single frag can become a multi-headed colony within a year under good conditions, making it one of the fastest-growing LPS available.

Placement and Flow

Low to moderate flow suits Duncans well. Their tentacles are delicate and will retract if blasted by strong, direct current. Place them on the sand bed or on a lower rock ledge where flow is gentle and diffused. Because Duncans do not possess potent sweeper tentacles, they are one of the few LPS corals you can position relatively close to neighbours without triggering aggression — though a small buffer of 5 to 8 cm is still wise.

Lighting

Duncans are not light-hungry. A PAR range of 50 to 120 is sufficient, which makes them perfect candidates for shaded lower areas of the tank that might be too dim for SPS or even some other LPS. Under the LED fixtures popular among Singapore reefers, start conservatively and observe the coral’s response over a fortnight. If the tentacles remain extended and the colour holds steady, your lighting is on point.

Water Parameters

Maintain standard reef parameters: salinity at 1.025, alkalinity between 7.5 and 9.0 dKH, calcium at 400 to 440 ppm and magnesium at 1,250 to 1,350 ppm. Temperature should sit at 25 to 27 °C — easily managed with a chiller in Singapore’s tropical climate. Duncans tolerate slightly elevated nitrate better than many corals, making them a solid choice for tanks still maturing their nutrient export routines.

Feeding for Rapid Growth

This is where Duncans truly shine. They are enthusiastic feeders that visibly grab food with their tentacles. Offer mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, reef pellets or finely chopped seafood two to three times a week. Each polyp can consume a surprisingly large morsel — roughly the size of a small pea. Regular feeding is the single biggest factor in turning a modest frag into a showpiece colony. A duncan coral Duncanopsammia care routine that includes consistent target feeding will outperform one that relies on photosynthesis alone.

Growth and Fragging

Healthy Duncans can add several new heads per month when well-fed. Fragging is straightforward — use bone cutters to separate branches, then mount frags on plugs with super glue gel. Allow a week of recovery in low flow before placing the frag in its permanent position. Duncan frags are popular on Carousell and at local reef swaps in Singapore because they grow quickly enough to share without diminishing the mother colony.

Common Issues

Duncans are among the hardiest LPS, but they are not immune to problems. Brown jelly disease can occur if water quality deteriorates suddenly. Bristleworms occasionally nibble on extended tentacles at night — a small bristleworm trap can help if you notice torn polyps. Prolonged retraction during the day usually indicates excessive flow or an uninvited hitchhiker irritating the coral.

Related Reading

More beginner-friendly coral and reef guides from Gensou Aquascaping Singapore:

• First Corals for Beginners in a Reef Tank
• How to Feed Corals: Target Feeding in Your Reef
• Mushroom Coral Discosoma Care Guide