Valentine's Day Massacre

Valentine's Day Massacre is a Zoanthus strain recognised for a red-pink face set around a dark centre, dusted with fine gold speckle that catches the light across the oral disc. Often shortened to VDM, it has the classic small-polyp, mat-forming habit of Zoanthus, with tightly packed polyps that read as a vivid pink-red patch from a distance and show their darker centres and speckling up close. As a fairly well-known Tier 2 name in the hobby, it is a reliable colour anchor for a zoanthid garden rather than a fleeting novelty.

Care

Place it in the bottom to middle of the rockwork under medium lighting with medium flow moving through the mat. Like other zoanthids it does best with measurable nutrients in the water — it will sulk, shrink and lose colour in ultra-clean, stripped systems — and with stable alkalinity rather than chasing numbers. Care difficulty is rated easy, so consistent light, flow and chemistry matter more than any special feeding, though occasional fine foods broadcast to the colony are taken readily.

Keeping and spread

Growth is moderate and entirely mat-forming: the colony spreads by extending its coenenchyme over adjacent rock, adding polyps at the edge. Give it about 2 in of clear space so the advancing mat does not smother slower neighbours, and consider isolating it on its own rock if you want to contain it. With moderate aggression, placement is about competition for space rather than stinging. To frag, lift or cut through the mat between polyps with a sharp blade and mount the section to a plug or rubble, allowing it time to reattach and open fully.