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Goniopora Fragmentation:
So you want to frag your
Goniopora huh? Just to be clear
here, there is a difference between fragmentation
and propagation. Fragmentation doesn't necessarily
mean that there will be MORE total volume of coral
created. If you frag a Goniopora colony and a couple
of the frags die, you end up with less coral than
what you started with.......and unfortunately, Goniopora
are not the fastest growers. Propagation, on the other
hand, is an increase in the total volume of coral
either by enlargement of the colony or by the production
of offspring. Ideally, it would be best to allow the
coral colony to increase in size before fragging it,
but since things don't always happen that way the
next best scenario would be to at least make sure
the coral is healthy first before cutting it up.
A Purple Goniopora sp.
 At
the moment, this coral is not the healthiest specimen
to fragment. Notice how short the polyps are (they
should be longer) and how the tentacles surrounding
the mouths look like little nubs (they should be longer
and thicker too). When the coral is retracted, the
perimeter tissue doesn't appear as if it is growing.
In fact, it appears to be receding. To fragment this
coral now would not be a good idea. How can a coral
regenerate tissue to heal itself if it isn't even
growing? A very good way of losing a whole Goniopora
colony to Brown Jelly infection is to fragment it
when it is unhealthy. It needs to be fattened up first.
Exactly one month later:
 I
fed the Goni regularly and then quit feeding two days
before fragging. The polyps and tentacles look much
healthier now. The polyp stalks have become more brown
and the tentacles have become more purple. There is
new growth around the coral's perimeter too, which
is probably the single most important occurence to
look for when preparing to frag Goniopora.
I have noticed when Goniopora
contracts a brown jelly infection, feeding the coral
makes it worse. So, to reduce the chance of infection,
I stopped feeding a few days prior to cutting and
resumed feeding a few days after cutting.
Tools of the trade:
 It's
pretty simple: A coping saw, a bowl, and a block of
wood. The saw cost around $5 or $6 and came with a
fine toothed saw blade. Due to the growth form of
Goniopora, a coping saw is much easier to use than
a dremel and cuts more cleanly than a chisel....and
doesn't create as much mess either. The bowl is for
keeping extra tank water in to rinse off the pieces
after the coral is cut and the block of wood is to
keep me from gouging my table.
Capturing the victim:
 When
handling Goniopora, it is always best to make sure
the coral is completely retracted before picking it
up. This way, there isn't as much risk of tearing
the delicate polyp tissue. I use the waving hand technique
to get the coral to retract.
Planning the cut:
 I
planned the cutting route so that it would take out
as few polyps as possible (red dotted line). Plus,
the coral was not as thick in the area where I planned
the cut. I knocked off a little bit of extra rock,
which is in the bowl of tank water. Notice, my thumb
looks like it is mashing the perimeter tissue. It
is not, but that is something to watch out for when
handling Goniopora.
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