Fraging

[ashiee2]

m thinking of fraging some of my corals but not really sure how to , iv watched a few videos but just wanted more opinion .
what have people found easyer to do it epoxy or tie them down .
with my hand leather coral stuck it self to a big rock and i was seeing if i could just cut a peice off with razor blade and place it some where .?

any tips? thanks

 

[Flreefer]

Leathers are def one of the easiest to frag. Mine frag themselves all the time. Making a clean cut with a razor blade will work fine. I usually just pinch the bottom in between some rubble rock, and within a week or two, it's attached. Just place it in an area with some protection from heavy current.
Glue on a soft coral is difficult to get to bond. A loose rubber band might work with a leather frag, I've just never saw the need. They grab hold pretty quickly.
Good luck with it!

 

[ashiee2]

thank you

 

[ashiee2]

ill take a picture of my leather coral tonight and show you .

 

[ashiee2]

could i just cut a peice off

 

[Flreefer]

Nice Leather!!
I wouldn't use scissors, they pinch while they cut, and that does damage to the tissue. Really the best way is a razor blade.
You can just take one of the fingers off. I would try to do it right where the finger comes out from the rest of the body, that way when the fragee heals it will just look normal, like you never fragged it. Hope that makes sense!

 

[christine2012]

Just out of curiosity, do they "feel" it when you cut them? I'm really uneducated in the world of saltwater, but one day I'd love to do corals.

 

[Flreefer]

Just out of curiosity, do they "feel" it when you cut them? I'm really uneducated in the world of saltwater, but one day I'd love to do corals.

No, corals don't have a sensory system like you and I. Many soft corals fracture themselves to drop off pieces, then the pieces grow a base, this is how they reproduce.
They definitely notice the intrusion, and may close up for a bit, but usually recover quickly.

 

[christine2012]

No, corals don't have a sensory system like you and I. Many soft corals fracture themselves to drop off pieces, then the pieces grow a base, this is how they reproduce.
They definitely notice the intrusion, and may close up for a bit, but usually recover quickly.

Thank you! Very cool how that works.

 

[Flreefer]

See the piece folded over in the first pic. This piece will continue to fold back and forth in the current, until it falls off.
After a few months, it grows into one of the ones in the second pic!
I've had the large leather for like 7 years, and have probably gotten 40 babies from it. I always bring them to my LFS, and get a little trade in credit for something new!

View attachment 102950

Parent coral

View attachment 102951

Offspring

 

[ashiee2]

madd thats what i wanna do