Description:
The Open Brain coral has a heavy conical base skeleton that is usually in the form of a pinched oval when viewed from the top. There are usually 2 or 3 large polyps which are red or green in color.  The red forms are usually from lower light environments than the green forms.  Tentacles are extended around the mouth during evening and night time.

Veron: Colonies are flabello-meandroid and free-living.  They are usually hourglass shaped, up to 80 millimeters in length with one to three separate mouths.  Large, fully flabello-meandroid colonies are uncommon.  Valleys have large regular septa and paliform lobes and a large columella of tangled spines.  Polyps are fleshy.  When tentacles are retracted during the day a large mantle extends well beyond the perimeter of the skeleton.  This retracts if disturbed.  At night tentacles in several rows are extended from the expanded oral disc inside the mantle.  The mouth is approximately 10 millimeters across.  Color:  Polyps, especially the mantles, are often brightly colored, usually yellow, brown, blue or green.  

Natural Environment:
Veron: Inter-reef environments and on soft substrates around continental islands.  Frequently found with other free-living corals:  Heteropsammia (Dendropphylliidae), Heterocyathus (Caryophylliidae) and the fungiids, Cycloseris and Diaseris.  Large colonies are found only in certain protected, shallow island embayments.  Abundance:  Rare on reefs, common around continental islands and some inter-reef areas.

Care:
Hardiness:  Moderately hardy.  Sometimes will be picked on by aggressive fish.  A thumbnail above shows the skeleton showing through where a fish has picked at the coral.  It is possible for the coral to recover if the offending fish and the coral are separated.  

Lighting: Requires moderate to strong lighting. As noted above, the red variants may require less light than the green variety.

Water Current:Open Brain corals prefer low to moderate water flow for optimum polyp extension..