Flora & Fauna

Strikingly colourful — males flash vivid red, orange, and yellow with iridescent highlights during display. Peaceful and active; best kept as one male with several females. A jewel of the mid-water column.

Small, cold-water snail — an exceptional algae grazer often used in reef tanks as clean-up crew. Prefers cooler temperatures so it's ideal for FOWLR tanks or tanks below 74°F. Peaceful and prolific.

The largest clownfish species, maroon-red with bold white stripes. Highly aggressive — best kept as a single specimen or bonded pair. One of the most striking reef fish available.

Iconic labyrinthine-patterned brain coral — the classic reef centrepiece. Hardy, slow-growing, and tolerant of moderate conditions. Green fluorescent under actinic lighting. A timeless display piece.

Dazzling rainbow colouration — females green-blue, males sporting a vivid magenta-and-green pattern. A sand-diver that buries to sleep. Natural predator of flatworms and pyramid snails.

Brilliant golden-yellow with a flowing, eel-like body. Often mimics Lyretail Anthias in colour. Perches on rockwork and darts into crevices when startled — reef-safe and entertaining to watch.

Mushroom corals (discosoma) are flat, fleshy soft corals available in a huge range of colours including green, blue, red, and metallic. They are excellent beginner corals, requiring low to medium light and tolerating nutrient-rich water better than SPS corals.

Small sand-dwelling scavenger that buries itself and erupts from the substrate to feed on meaty detritus. Excellent sand bed aerator and clean-up crew staple.

Tiny electric-blue-striped goby renowned as a cleaner fish — will pick parasites from larger tank mates. Ideal for nano reefs. The Caribbean's answer to the cleaner wrasse.

The iconic clownfish made famous by Finding Nemo. Hardy, peaceful, and symbiotic with anemones. Excellent beginner saltwater fish.

Free-living LPS with dramatic maze-like ridges and vivid colours — green, red, blue, and multicolour morphs. Placed directly on sand; inflates impressively at night to feed. One of the most beautiful reef centrepieces.

Vivid orchid-purple throughout — one of the most coveted nano reef fish. A Red Sea endemic that is now tank-bred widely. Bold personality for its size; can be aggressive to smaller fish.

Unmistakable with its yellow head, dark mid-band and polka-dotted orange rear — like a fish in pyjamas. Nocturnal schooler that hovers in groups near branching corals. Very peaceful and reef-safe.

Large-polyped cousins of Zoanthids — drab tan-brown in the wild but cultivated morphs include greens, yellows, and reds. Hardy and fast-spreading. Contain palytoxin — handle with gloves. Excellent beginner coral.

Translucent shrimp with red stripes. Famous for eating Aiptasia pest anemones. An essential pest controller for reef tanks.

Pale pink-orange with a single white dorsal stripe and cheek bar. One of the smallest and most peaceful clownfish — ideal for nano reef tanks alongside Magnificent Anemones.

Famous for its symbiosis with watchman gobies — the shrimp digs a burrow and the goby guards the entrance. Pairs perfectly with Yellow Watchman or Randall's Pistol Goby. Produces a loud snapping sound.

Pulsing xenia is one of the most fascinating soft corals, rhythmically opening and closing its feathery polyps in a hypnotic pulse. It grows rapidly and can spread across rockwork quickly, so placement should be deliberate. Thrives in stable reef conditions.

One of the most visually striking nano reef fish — white to yellow body fading into vivid purple-magenta. Peaceful and reef-safe; will jump, so a tight lid is essential.

Bushy red-to-burgundy macroalgae prized as live food for herbivorous fish — tangs, rabbitfish, and urchins graze on it enthusiastically. Also an excellent nutrient exporter in refugia. Tumbles well under flow and tolerates a wide range of conditions.

Colourful mushroom coral covered in bumpy vesicles in shades of green, orange, and blue. Slower-growing than regular mushrooms. Hardy and great for beginners.

The Indo-Pacific cousin of Ricordea florida — single-polyp mushroom with vivid nodular texture. Some of the most wildly colourful colourations in the hobby: electric blue, neon orange, purple, and multicolour. Highly collectible.

Arguably the most striking Caribbean reef fish — front half vivid purple, rear half bright yellow. Hardy, peaceful, and reef-safe. Tends to hang upside-down under ledges mimicking its cave habitat.

Slender, schooling dartfish with a distinctive forked tail and blue-grey body. Best kept in pairs or small groups; will share a burrow. Reef-safe and active in the mid-water column.

Elegant, understated tang ranging from brown to blue-grey with fine markings. Peaceful and hardy. Excellent algae grazer and reef-safe.

Bright green, tissue-thin sheets of macroalgae familiar on coastlines worldwide. Fast-growing nutrient exporter and a relished food for tangs, urchins, and rabbitfish. Tolerates a very wide temperature and salinity range. Can become weedy if not harvested — keep export-focused.

Tiny brown-orange shrimp with white polka-dots and a characteristic upward tail-bob dance. Commonly lives among anemones and Zoanthids in groups. One of the most endearing nano reef invertebrates.

Active and colourful wrasse with six horizontal blue stripes. Pest controller — eats flatworms and small pests. Can be territorial with similar species.

Green star polyps (GSP) are one of the most popular beginner corals, forming rapid-spreading mats of bright green polyps. They are extremely hardy, tolerating a wide range of conditions. Their fast growth can become invasive, so placement should be considered carefully.

Fast-moving, flat-shelled snail that looks more like a slug. Reproduces readily in reef tanks, forming beneficial colonies that graze film algae and coralline. Fish generally ignore them; a great hitchhiker species.

One of the most popular reef blennies — mottled tan with a characteristic black tail spot and expressive eyes. Grazes on algae and is generally reef-safe with corals. Full of personality.

Larger turban-shaped snail with a heavily ridged shell. A workhorse algae grazer on rockwork and glass — handles tougher hair algae that smaller snails cannot manage. Peaceful and active.

The toadstool coral is a large, distinctive soft coral with a stalk and a broad, ruffled cap covered in polyps. One of the most beginner-friendly reef corals, it tolerates a wide range of conditions. It periodically closes up and sheds a waxy film — normal behaviour.

Bold, tomato-red with a single white cheek stripe. Hardy and beginner-friendly, closely related to the Ocellaris. Pairs readily with bubble-tip anemones in captivity.

Conical-shelled snail that rights itself when knocked over — unlike turbo snails. Efficient algae grazer on glass and rock. Reef-safe and long-lived.

Slightly more vibrant coloring than its ocellaris cousin. Pairs beautifully with Bubbletip or Magnificent anemones. Very popular reef fish.