Ring of Fire Ricordea Yuma Mushroom

Description:

• Scientific Name: Ricordea yuma

• Common Names: Yuma mushroom, Ricordea yuma mushroom coral

• Family: Ricordeidae (type of Corallimorph)

• Appearance:

  • Dome-shaped with a central mouth and a fleshy, bumpy texture covered in vesicles (bubble-like structures).

  • Can display intense and mixed colors—orange, pink, purple, green, blue, and neon shades.

  • Larger and more textured than Ricordea florida, with longer tentacle-like vesicles around the edges.

  • Often appears soft and inflated, especially under good lighting.

Care Level: Moderate

While hardy once established, R. yuma can be sensitive during acclimation. Here’s how to care for it:

Do:

• Acclimate slowly to new lighting and water conditions to avoid stress or “melting.”

• Provide moderate lighting – Too much light can cause them to bleach or shrink.

• Give them space – Though peaceful, they may sting nearby corals or be stung by aggressive neighbors.

• Target feed occasionally with coral foods like mysis, reef roids, or small meaty foods—they’ll close around the food and ingest it.

Avoid:

• Direct, high flow or light – They prefer gentle movement and indirect light.

• Unstable water parameters – Especially sensitive to swings in salinity and alkalinity.

• Placing near aggressive corals like torch or frogspawn.

Propagation:

• Ricordea yuma can propagate naturally by splitting or budding.

• Can also be fragged carefully using a scalpel or razor blade, cutting through the mouth and base—but this is trickier with yuma than florida due to its more sensitive nature.

• Allow cuttings to heal in a low-light, low-flow area on rubble rock.

Potential Issues:

• “Melting” or rapid tissue loss can occur from stress, often due to sudden changes or too much light.

• Pests like flatworms or vermetid snails can irritate or damage them.

• Detritus buildup – Keep debris off their surface to prevent infections.

Bonus Tip:

R. yuma colors up beautifully under actinic/blue lighting and often glows under LEDs—perfect for reef tanks with nighttime viewing.