Professor Sanjay Joshi: I think people need to realize that a photon is a photon, independent
of the source of light. Just because it comes from a light-emitting diode does not make it anything special or different in terms of photosynthesis. As long as the LED can provide enough
photons of light over a wide enough spectrum, there should be no problem keeping any kind
of zooxanthellate invertebrates. I have not come across any that suffer just because the light is
coming from LEDs.
CORAL: If someone wants to set up a reef tank—let‘s assume it is a relatively small one, say 26 gal-
lons ( 100 L) in volume—and he or she wants to equip it with an LED lamp, what groups of cnidar-
ians would you suggest concentrating on?
professor Joshi visits
Jürgen Wendel’s
coral propagation
facilities (and
family vineyard)
in Leinsweiler,
Germany.
Professor Sanjay Joshi: There are sufficient choices available in LED lighting for smaller aquariums that there should be no limitations on what people can keep, provided they make the right
choice. There are LED setups that can easily provide enough light intensity for the most light-hungry of corals. As long as the aquarist has the skills necessary to keep the animals alive, he
will be able to find the right LED lighting setup for them.
CORAL: Thank you very much for this interview, Sanjay. (Editor: See Aquarium Portrait in this
issue, page 99.)
