+KimP Posted March 31, 2012 Share Posted March 31, 2012 Any idea what this is? It was a dead looking skeleton on the rock of a coral I bought a while back. I noticed soon after that it had colored up and now it's about the size of a dime. Here are some pictures. The skeleton looked like a plate coral, sort of? I cut it off the rock, so the white stuff underneath is just the new super glue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted March 31, 2012 Share Posted March 31, 2012 Looks like a fungia sp. polyp to me. Check this thread here: http://www.austinree...fungia-sp-death If it's development follows what happens in one of my tanks it will drop off when it gets about 1 1/2" dia. and then a few weeks later new polyp will show up in the same spot. i get about 1 a year this way. The trick is keeping track or finding it when it drops off, I loose about half when they get back under the rock and get covered by sand from a watchman goby. here's a picture of a current polyp growing: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted March 31, 2012 Share Posted March 31, 2012 +1 fungia. I can see what looks like a central mouth with the little tentacles radially aligned around the body. If you touch it and the skin withdraws, you should see the pattern below: http://www.livestockusa.org/smgrnplate.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted March 31, 2012 Author Share Posted March 31, 2012 Very cool! Timfish, I sure hope that's what happens with this one. That would be so neat. If it is a fungia does it have to be a certain size before it starts to put out the little tentacles? This one doesn't have any that I've seen, but until a few days ago it wasn't where I could see it well. It also looks similar to a blasto polyp a little, though I've never seen one this color before. I'll keep an eye out for tentacles. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 It could still be a blastomussa polyp. Other possiblilities could be a Cycloseris sp. or a Scolymia sp.. If you have Sprungs book "Corals, A Quick Reference Guide" your pictures also resemble juvinile Oxypora sp. or Echinophyllia sp. on pgs 123 & 124, if you see the development of additional mouths that would be an indicator it's one of these species. With mine the tenticles aren't noticible until about an inch diameter but the genus Fungia has 18 species and tenticle length is variable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted April 1, 2012 Author Share Posted April 1, 2012 I spoke too soon. I finally got a view of it and there are tentacles all over it. It's such a cool little coral. Good call guys! Thanks for the other ideas Timfish. I'll keep them in mind as this grows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bannerfish Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 That is so cool, your lucky! My plate was having a series of misfortunes and I was hoping it would split...but it just made 2 mouths instead. Who knows it might just new taking forever to actually split. Your little guy is real pretty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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