Hawaiian Ding Dang Zoa

Hawaiian Ding Dang Zoa

Hawaiian Ding Dang belongs to the “People Eater” group, identified by the narrow mouth slit running through the centre of each polyp. This one leans turquoise and green — a sky-blue to green oral disc, blue-green tentacles, sometimes with a golden edge — and it’s known for glowing intensely under actinic or blue lighting, which is part of what makes it a sought-after piece for collectors.

It’s worth knowing there’s a similarly-named “Hawaiian People Eater” in the hobby that runs pink rather than green/blue — different coral, easy to mix up on a quick search, so we’ve gone with what’s actually in front of us here.

Care basics

• Lighting: Low to moderate. Handles a range of intensities, and colour fluoresces strongly under blue/actinic spectrum.
• Flow: Moderate to high. Keeps detritus off the polyps and supports steady spread.
• Water chemistry: Stable calcium, alkalinity and magnesium matter more than chasing exact numbers.
• Feeding: Not required, but occasional fine-particle feeding can help growth and colour.
• Handling: Contains palytoxin, as all zoanthids do. Never handle out of water, and wear gloves when fragging.

Supplied as 3+ zoas on a plug.