Need an ID..... part 2

[mutley29]

I know ID'ing corals is fraught with a world of complications, but i was hoping some of you guys and gals could help me out with a specific name for the coral pictured below,
i know it's a Tree or Colt but thats about it, i'm starting to develop a serious interest in getting the taxonomy, (if thats the right word),
plus this coral looks very cool in my tank, and would just like to know more about it

Thanks for any help

Anton

 

[shawnz28]

Fro the pic I think it is some kind of Dendronepthya

 

[DaisyPolyp]

I agree...

Genus: Dendronephthya
Species: rubeola, mirabilis, aurea, others

This is largely known as the most difficult coral to keep. You can get a lot of good information here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/dendrofaqs.htm

 

[Len]

I actually think it's something else: Lemnalia sp. Easier to keep then Dendros, but not one of the hardier softies out there.

 

[DaisyPolyp]

Could be... I hope for mutley's sake that's what it is.

 

[ChrisRD]

I'll move this thread to the main discussion forum so you get more feedback...

 

[Ben_Wilson]

Dendronepthya, yes, also known as carnation coral. However not difficult if you know how. Low to no light, med to high flow, and lots of dirrect feedings of phytoplankton. These do very well when a wave maker is in use. They can be expensive to keep because of the price of phyto.
________________
Ben

 

[DaisyPolyp]

I have not read of azooxanthellate corals being directly affected by light. Dendronephthya is found in at many depths from as shallow as 2 meters to beyond 30 meters. However, I do agree they're not as hard to keep as many say, as long as you maintain a good environment for it with moderate levels of DOCs and plentiful phyto in the water column (I keep a Dendronephthya in my 75g).

 

[mutley29]

Well i don't know what to say really, thanks for all the help,

it was sold to me as a colt coral, for $29, although after a much closer inspection at home i noticed those white veins almost like rice grains that you see on Carnation Corals, which lead me to believe it was a Carnation, but, this thing loves bright light, i have it under 800 watts of 20000k MH's, it stands upright, i was under the impression(probably a wrong one) that Carnations hung upside down, polyps are extended all day, and it's starting to grow quite rapidly.

I am inclined to go with Lens choice at the moment, of course that may change.

plus i have always said i would never keep something as needy as a carnation until i was confident i could care for it, and i'm not that confident yet.

Now i have another ID request, i was given this for free by one of my LFSas he thought it was on it's last legs, the guy said it was a Blue pompom coral, unfortunatly i have lent all my ID books to my boss as he's thinking of starting a tank,
the reason i got it for free was as the guy picked it up the cauliflower type head you can see on the top detached as he moved it in the tank,
got it a week and a half ago, have had the 2 new chutes you can see at the front grow out since i got it.

sorry the pics are bad, i'll try to get some better ones tomorrow.

Thanks again for the help

Anton

 

[elpescado]

The Cnidarian photo seems to have a fair amount of sclerites in the main support stalk, however the inner stalk of the coral isn't in total focus. I would venture a guess that it is possibly Neospongodes sp., or Stereonephthya sp..
As for the last photo it is an Ascidian. It is a species of colonial tunicate (sea squirt) that is usually a nice rich blue color. This is not actually an invertebrate, but what is called a chordate (having a notochord, which is the precursur to the spinal chord). They are filter feeders. I have often wondered if some species may be partially photosynthetic as well (not positive on that).
I don't however know the genus or species. Try going to the following web site:
http://www.ascidians.com

 

[Anonymous]

Damn, you beat me to it with the ID.

Technically, Urochordates are invertebrates, even though they are in the Phylum Chordata. "Invertebrate" is kind of a catch all term that has no real meaning, other than including everything that's not in the Subphylum Vertebrata. It's kind of like labeling anything that's not an octopus, clam, or snail an "Inmolluscan". Cephalochordates (lancelets) are the other example of chordates that are invertebrates.

Anyway...
It looks like your sea squirt has some algae growing on it, which is not a good sign.
Here's a bit more info:
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t ... t=lollipop

FWIW, I don't think your softie is a Dendro either.

 

[John_Brandt]

It is nearly impossible to identify these types of soft corals by photographs. The best any of us might do is try to match it to existing photos in which the author has given an identification. This coral most closely resembles what Nilsen, Sprung & Delbeek say is Neospongodes sp.

 

[mutley29]

WOW, You guys ROCK, thanks again guys for the help.

The algae was worse when i got it, and has slowly disappeared, and is now almost gone, i was loathe to start jostling the coral for fear of shocking it too much, it seems to be doing fine at the moment.

question is do i tell the guy at the LFS it's ok? LOL

elpescado, thanks for the link, it has helped me with the ID of something i had in my tank and presumed it was a tunicate of some desciption, it is in fact "Botryllus planus" and is growing like wildfire in my refuge and in small areas of my tank, thanks

Anton