Ronnie Braithwaite
Focus of Research
 The project explored the effect that feeding has on the
growth of the open brain coral
 Other characteristics of the coral were observed such
as the color and tentacles
 Research on the correlation between the number of
mouths and the growth of open brain coral was
minimal
 The majority of research was focused on eating habits
and growth of open brain coral
Taxonomy
 Kingdom: Animalia
 Phylum: Cnidaria
 Class: Anthozoa
 Order: Scleractinia
 Family: Trachyphylliidae
 Genus: Trachyphyllia
 Species: T. geoffroyi
Background Information
 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. (“Corals of the
Worldonline”:2001)
 The polyps of Open Brain Coral inflate considerably in
size with water, about two to three inches beyond its
skeleton, during the daytime (FreshMarine.com: Open
Brain Coral. 2012.)
Background Information (Cont.)
 Open Brain Corals derive their nutrition chiefly
through photosynthesis which is performed by
zooxanthellae, a photosynthetic alga living
symbiotically within the coral (FreshMarine.com:
Open Brain Coral. 2012.)
 Open Brain Corals are said to be one of the easiest
species to care for and is best for beginners
How it came about?
 Originally, the project was to compare frozen food
with live food
 Feeding vs no feeding was a more practical experiment
 After reading research, I proposed these questions…
Questions
 Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower from feeding on
frozen foods versus live foods?
Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower from feeding on
larger sized foods versus smaller sized foods?
Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower when fed only at
night versus only during the day.
What are the possible lurking variables or extraneous variables that
make measuring coral growth difficult?
How is the Open Brain Coral growth affected when fed dietary
supplements like Iodine, Strontium and Magnesium?
Does increased quantity and frequency of feeding cause the Open
Brain Coral to grow faster?
Hypothesis
Feeding the Brain Coral colonies will cause them to grow
faster and as a result produce more mouths than
without feeding them.
This hypothesis was created based off extensive research
on
 the feeding habits of open brain coral
 the growth and reproduction of the open brain coral
 sources of nutrition
 the structural features and morphology
Methods: The Plan
 The polyps of open brain coral inflate considerably in
size with water so instead of measuring growth of the
open brain coral by changed in size, the number of
mouths on the open brain coral were counted daily
 For the first nine weeks, the corals were not fed and
data was collected
 For the remaining twelve weeks, corals were fed frozen
Cyclop-eeze Mysis shrimp and data was collected
 One cube was dispersed in R/O water and fed to the
corals twice a week
Methods: Data Collection
•Counting the mouths
of corals at the end of
February
•LBC, MBC, SBC
•Tentacles Extended?
•Fed Today?
•Color?
•Salinity?
•Temperature
Tentacles non-Extended vs
Tentacles Extended
Close-up
Answers?
 Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower from feeding on
frozen foods versus live foods?
Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower from feeding on
larger sized foods versus smaller sized foods?
Does the Trachyphyllida geoffryoi grow faster/slower when fed only at
night versus only during the day.
What are the possible lurking variables or extraneous variables that
make measuring coral growth difficult?
How is the Open Brain Coral growth affected when fed dietary
supplements like Iodine, Strontium and Magnesium?
Does increased quantity and frequency of feeding cause the Open
Brain Coral to grow faster?
The Data
Coral Growth without Feeding
Coral Growth with Feeding
25
20
15
SBC
10
MBC
5
LBC
0
Number of Mouths
Number of Mouths
25
20
15
SBC
10
MBC
5
LBC
0
1
2
3
4
5
Weeks
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Weeks
17
18
19
20
21
Rejects the Hypothesis
 The data rejects the hypothesis because there were
more mouths grown during the period when open
brain corals were not fed
 However the conclusion that feedings cause open
brain corals to grow slower is not supported
 There are number of lurking variables that were not
accounted for in this experiment such as the natural
growth rate of corals of varying sizes, the position of
the corals in the tank, etc
Collective Data: Value and
Application?
Coral Growth
25
Number of Mouths
20
15
SBC
MBC
10
LBC
5
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Weeks
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
Conclusion
 The conclusion that the data most firmly supports is
that feedings do not have any direct effect on the
growth of mouths of open brain coral
 Of course, a definitive conclusion could not possibly
be made without more evidence to fully supporting it…
Future directions?
How can I make it more complete?
No definitive conclusion can be made without:
 controlling for more variables to isolate the one
independent variable (feedings) to determine if that
variable is the true cause of the dependent variable
 extending the experiment for a longer period of time
 repeating the experiment
Conclusions from outside sources
 No experiments were found specifically to open brain
corals
Challenges?
Data Collection Counting mouths
 Feeding to make sure the one cube was dispersed as
equally as possible
 Some days during feedings, the tentacles were not
extended like other days
 Small brain coral rarely opened its tentacles to take in
food
The Big Picture
The collection of data was legitimate
 The independent variable was feedings vs no feedings
 The dependent variable was number of mouths
but…
 To truly support or reject the hypothesis with a
conclusion well grounded in the data, more variables
needed to be controlled for
Bibliography

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Ando, Ryoko, et al. “An Optical Marker Based on the UV-Induced Green-to-Red Photoconversion of
a Fluorescent Protein.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of
America 99.20 (2002): 12651-56. JSTOR. Web. 20 Oct. 2012. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3073278>.
2. Calfo, Anthony. Book of Coral Propagation: A Concise Guide to the Successful Care and Culture of
Coral Reef Invertebrates. Monroeville, PA: Readingtrees.com, 2001. Print.
3. “Corals of the Worldonline.” Corals of the World Factsheet and Images. N.p., n.d. Web.
<http://coral.aims.gov.au/speciesPages/species_metadata/0350/view>.
4. “Open Brain Coral- Green.” Blue Zoo Aquatics. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.bluezooaquatics.com/productdetail.asp?did=3&cid=51&pid=1389
5. "Open Brain Coral." Open Brain Coral. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.reefcorner.com/SpecimenSheets/open_brain_coral.htm>.
6. "Open Brain Coral (Red) - Trachyphyllia Geoffroyi - Green Open Brain Coral." FreshMarine.com.
N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2012. <http://www.freshmarine.com/open-brain-red-coral.html>.
7. "Trachyphlliidae." Trachyphlliidae. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.wetwebmedia.com/trachyphlliidae.htm>.
8. “Trachyphyllia geoffroyi and the ex-Wellsophyllia radiata.” Tropical Fish Magazine Mar. 2007: n.
pag. Tropical Fish Magazine. Web. 20 Oct. 2012.
<http://www.tfhmagazine.com/details/articles/trachyphyllia-geoffroyi-and-the-exwellsophylliaradiata.htm>.
9. Trevor-Jones, Andrew. “Coral Feeding.” ReefKeeping Apr. 2009: n. pag. ReefKeeping. Web. 20 Oct.
2012. <http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-05/atj/index.php>.