Acanthastrea echinata, also known as Pineapple coral, Artichoke coral, Starry cup coral, and Favia, is a coral

Coral

Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...

 often used in aquarium

Aquarium

An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...

s.

Description

Echinata colonies are massive and cerioid, with laterally compressed corallites of uneven height. Walls are acute: septa are thick, with large teeth. Columellae are barely developed. Colonies have a thick fleshy mantle which is covered by fine papilla

Plant cuticle

Plant cuticles are a protective waxy covering produced only by the epidermal cells of leaves, young shoots and all other aerial plant organs without periderm...

e. The colonies are colourful: red, purple and green are the most common colours, with corallites and walls almost always of contrasting colours. A similar species is Micromussa amakusensis.
Its habitat are shallow reef environments especially in subtropical localities.
Abundance: Sometimes common.

Aquarium Information

Echinata grows well in most reef aquariums. Keep under moderate light. This coral can survive without any direct feeding, but will thrive, and grow fast with target feeding of small meaty foods once a week. Place the coral in an area of moderate flow where currents will help supply trace elements. Do not keep with large angel fish, or butterfly fish.