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FAQs about Mussid Coral Identification
Related Articles: Mussid Corals,
Related FAQs: Mussid FAQs 1,
Mussid FAQs 2,
Mussid Behavior, Mussid Compatibility,
Mussid Selection,
Mussid Disease,
Mussid Systems,
Mussid Feeding,
Mussid Reproduction,
Stony/True Coral,
Coral System Set-Up, Coral
System Lighting, Stony Coral
Identification, Stony Coral Selection, Coral
Placement, Foods/Feeding/Nutrition,
Disease/Health, Propagation,
Growing Reef Corals, Stony
Coral Behavior,
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Acanthastrea ID 05/09/08
Can you help me ID this? I'm thinking about getting a frag. It's
identified as Acanthastrea Maxima. I understand this type of coral is
mis-identified with some regularity.
<It's certainly not easy to ID a coral down to a species without a close
look at the dead skeleton... sorry.>
What do you think?
<Personally, I don't think it's A. maxima. But again, it's hard to say
and I could certainly be wrong. This might help:
http://www2.aims.gov.au/coralsearch/html/901-1000/Species%20pages/911.htm>
Thanks for the help and for the rest of the info here on this amazing
site.
<De nada,
Sara M.> |
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Is this a Favia or
Mussa? Mussid... ID, fdg., sys.... using WWM
2/19/08
Howdy! Great site! I've been back and forth with folks over the last
month or so, and at various times was sure the piece of coral I had was
a Blastomussa, and at others that it was a Favia. Now I'm not certain,
so I figured I'd check with the experts.
<Mmmm>
Here is a picture of the coral just after I first put it in the tank:
I have tried feeding it Cyclop-Eeze when the polyps (that's what I call
them, not sure if that's what they are) are open. When they are open,
they almost look like little red crowns with fingery things with tiny
balls on top, almost like a king's crown. It's really difficult to say
whether they eat the shrimp or not. The bits that end up in the crevices
between the polyps tend to decay. In the above photo you can see in the
bottom-left crevice a bit of rotting CP. On at least two occasions, I
have seen that area get overgrown with a white gooey film that
eventually releases and floats in the water column, attached by a thread
or two to the area between the polyps (or so it seems). It eventually
goes away.
Below is a most recent photo. It looks like it has some red slime algae
on it:
<Not good...>
I have had it for approximately one month. I am eager figure out what
exactly this piece of coral is.
<Looks like a Blastomussa to me>
It does not appear as though it has grown at all. I'm not even sure if
it will? I'm not sure what to feed it, what flow to use, or what light
it needs. At the moment it is in moderate flow (2 power heads in a 10g
tank, one of them using the Hydor wavemaker Flo attachment), halfway up
the tank (65W 50/50 PC),
<Too puny...>
and as mentioned, I have tried direct feeding Cyclop-Eeze.
<...>
I also feed the tank phyto,
<.....>
so it may pick some of that up from swirling around.
Any ideas would be most welcome. Thanks!
Mike.
<Please read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/mussidae.htm
The linked files above... On Mussid Feeding, Systems... Bob Fenner>
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Help ID'ing
LPS... Not Sure – 10/01/07
Hi Crew Member,
<Hello Querier>
First I'd like to thank you and the site for all the great information
you provide.
<On behalf of Bob and the crew, you're welcome.>
I bought a piece of LR over a year ago now, about a few months after my
purchase I noticed a pink spot on an old LPS skeleton on the LR.
<Cool!>
The pink spot has now grown enough to be somewhat identifiable by the
trained eye.
<Mmm, maybe, but maybe not this trained eye... Might be more helpful to
see of the underlying skeleton from which this polyp is growing.>
I searched the net to find something that would maybe resemble my
mystery coral with no such luck.
<Sometimes not the easiest thing to determine when they are this small.>
I have included a pic if the nickel sized LPS. Any help ID'ing this
coral would be greatly appreciated.
<Fungia commonly produce these babies on skeletons... Maybe a member of
the family Mussidae looks a little like a Blastomussa but I don't think
it is, Scolymia or Cynarina maybe possibilities. Is hard to tell from
just one photo and this coral is still quite small.>
Thank you,
<Welcome! Mich> |
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Coral and Algae ID 3/15/06
Hi Crew!
<John>
Just a quick question if you please. I have attached the picture as
well as insert it into this mail. First, can you tell me what the coral
is
in the yellow circle under the mushroom corals? It stays retracted like
that during the day, but seems to "bloat" when the lights go off at
night.
<Perhaps a juvenile Mussid... can barely make it out>
It has grown a little in size since the rock was placed in the tank a
little over two weeks ago. Also, is the object in the second circle and
pretty
much all over the rest of the rocks BGA?
<Yes, of some sort>
At first, I know I am going to sound like a newbie, but it is okay,
because I am :),
<No worries>
I thought it was red coralline algae. However, when cleaning my tank
today I noticed with a little effort that it can be scraped off an it
only on the parts of the rock that receive direct light. It appears no
where else in the tank than on the live rocks. I do 10-25 % water
changes weekly (With R.O water). I have been adding calcium and
strontium (Sp) to the tank as well as Iodine for the skunk cleaner
shrimp. My levels are all zero with the exception of my nitrite which
this week was at .25 ppm.
<Mmm, this is a clue... should be zip>
My ph is 8.3 . I am also using a Berlin Airlift skimmer that is one of
their in-tank models. That also gets cleaned weekly to insure proper
operation. Thanks for the assistance! Oh yes my SG is 1.023
Thanks!
John
<Do give the articles, FAQs files on BGA, Algae Control a read over on
WWM. Bob Fenner> |
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Coral ID 12/22/05
Hi, I am hoping you can help me ID this piece of coral that my
loving husband got for me today for Christmas. My husband can't
remember the name, only that it is a hard coral. lol I have looked
everywhere and the only thing that closely resembles it is a
brain. When he first brought it home, I thought it was a clam cause
of the shape of its mantle but it is indeed not. There are spiky
ridges all over it and if it has tentacles/polyps they haven't
extracted yet. The crown is white with a pink center....the color
of the pic is rather poor. I hope this helps.
<Sorry to say that you either have a very ignorant or very
unscrupulous fish store. It looks like this was probably
Lobophyllia, but it is very much dead. If this is what it looked
like when purchased, I would demand a refund.>
If you don't mind, I have another coral question. I have two (red
and green) Montipora digitata frag, the green one seems to be
secreting this clear spider web like slime. Is this normal or
should I be worried? Thanks
<If the coral looks normal otherwise (good rich color, polyps
extended, not tissue recession), I would not worry at all. If it
really bothers you, you could blow it off with a turkey baster (a
new, clean one please!! Every reefkeeper should have one.) Best
Regards. AdamC.> |
Anthony and Steve,
The upside is that it may actually be easier to ID in this
condition! Heartbreaking that some store actually took this guys
money.
Adam |
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Acanthastrea echinata 8/3/05
Hello (again)
<Hi Niki, Ali here...>
Hope your day finds you well.....could you possibly identify this coral
for me?
<Sure can...>
I looked around, and I couldn't make a definite I.D.
It was shipped to us as a Micromussa (not what it looks like to me!)
<Acanthastrea echinata, great coral, I just hope you didn't pay too
much!>
Thanks again, Niki@CoralConnection
<Take care, Ali> |
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What Coral?
Hi Bob,
I am hoping that you can help with the identification of this coral.
The hobbyist who has had a very healthy colony for the last 10 years,
insists that it is a "brain coral".
He also has a sister colony from it.
I have looked in several books but not found it.
Thanks for your help.
All the best,
Iggy
<Mmm, a Mussid for sure, likely a Lobophyllia species. Please see here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mussids2.htm
Bob Fenner> |
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Identification of Neat Looking Thing
Hello Mr. Fenner ~
Would you please identify the creature in the attached photo?
<A type of anemone... may well be part of a group called Glass Anemones, particularly of the genus
Aiptasia... Ill-regarded due to their penchant for rapid reproduction, and difficulty of control/removal. There is coverage of this family on the WWM site:
http://wetwebmedia.com/aiptasia.htm>
If you look at
its middle, it is beginning to cleave and has two distinctive oral grooves
(disks?).
<Oral grooves>
Although the picture does not show it, there is actually a third
smaller oral groove on the bottom. When it came attached to some rock
purchased out of a friend's tank a couple of months ago, it only had one oral
groove.
Thank you!
Sherri Lindsey
<Please do read over the bit on WWM here, and I would separate the rock these are on to limit their spread somewhat. Bob Fenner> |
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Re: Identification of Neat Looking Thing
Oops --
I guess the picture I sent you didn't come across very well or something.
The neat looking thing is an ahermatypic coral.
(<A HREF="http://www.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=
ad4770b8b8fba3f17801b79141c3f4d7&threadid=28129">
http://www.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=ad4770b8b8fba3f17801b791
41c3f4d7&threadid=28129</A>)
The only reason I tell you this is so that if you post the picture along with
your response on your site, I hope others who have something similar to mine
don't mistakenly eradicate it.
<Hmm could be... a Mussid? Do you detect, as in see, feel a solid base/theca to this animal? Perhaps take a look through Dr.
Veron's recent "Corals of the World" through the ahermatypic Mussids. Bob Fenner>
Thank you,
Sherri |
Blastomussa "Pineapple Coral" II
Thanks for your reply. I have had the coral for 4 months now and it "appears" fine but, there is no new polyp growth or anything.
<a notoriously slow grower... please consider feeding very finely shredded meaty for to keep this coral and grow it>
It is located on top of a rock in my 20 gal tank and I wanted to make sure that it didn't like sand.
<yes... but do be careful not to burn it... a change or upgrade in bulbs could shock this animal terribly without caution>
I'm glad it doesn't because there is no sand in my tank. Are
there any good sources for information on this species? How can I tell
that it is truly happy?
<regular polyp extension/cycling and some growth. A rich dark color too>
Just so you know, I kind of "stumbled" upon this coral, the LFS had
just received it and they thought it was a red mushroom rock (which I
had been wanting for some time). I must say, it did look like mushroom
rock in the shipping package but, to my surprise shortly after I turned
on the lights the next day it was NOT mushroom rock but, a Blastomussa
wellsi coral!
<yes... I agree. And it is often misidentified... even as a brain coral (Faviid)>
Thanks again! Ann
<best regards, Anthony>
Atlantic Corals
Anthony, or whomever is on tonight,
<cheers mate>
Thank you for identifying the last two pics I sent you. These are all
hitchhikers on my LR from the Florida Keys.
<wow... hat is some killer live rock you have there! Purchased or
collected? Very beautiful diversity it seems>
I'm not going to add any corals to this tank, but I like to know what I
have in order to supply these creatures with the best care I can give
them.
<admirable my friend>
I don't believe in the idea that when something dies to say, "oh
well, it came with the LR". Every organism deserves its best chance
in my setup. <I'm starting to sound like the aquarist's version of M.
L. King Jr.>
<we are in agreement... and you do have some rarities that many reef
keepers would trade dearly for and give a great home of you ever choose to
part with them>
Anyway, some more pics, if you please.
I thank you so much (and my critters thank you even more), Mike
<my pleasure... the first image is likely a Faviid: the Rose coral
(Manicina)... although it is not crystal clear from the image/age/size of
coral. Possibly Mussa... but I think it likely will be a rose coral. The
second image is a solitary cup coral. Three families with more than a
handful of species looking quite similar are included under this umbrella
name. Both corals here are scleractinian reef builders... the latter is
weekly symbiotic or not symbiotic at all (requires daily feeding). Feeding
finely minced meaty foods of marine origin 3-5 times weekly minimum is
necessary and will keep these beauties just fine, Daily feeding for fast
growth. Do consider buying the Humann and DeLoach set (3) of dive books on
Florida and Caribbean creatures... all of these corals and so much more on
your live rock are Id.ed therein. Great books (Reef Creatures, Reef Coral,
Reef Fishes). With kind regards, Anthony> |
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Brain Coral ID
Hi Everyone,
One of my friends is selling this coral to me. It is
growing too large for his tank. I would like to know
what type of brain is it and what type care it needs
before I make purchase? As always thanks for your
expertise.
Wayne
<Looks like a Lobophyllia sp. to me. Pls see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mussids2.htm
Bob Fenner> |
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Blastomussa wellsi? 4/11/03
Hello again, I picked up this coral the other day thinking it was
Blastomussa wellsi...
<it does appear to be so... often mistaken for Faviid brain corals>
I was really excited as it was sold for $28 and the girl at the store
shrugged her shoulders and said," I think we call it moon
coral."
<indeed... it is how Blastomussa are commonly imported (with Faviids)>
Her uncertainty only solidified my belief that it was Blastomussa. But I
think I am wrong. Could this be a Favia/Favites sp.? I need to know,
because as of now it is near the bottom of the tank and I'd like to give
it proper placement for light and current. I hope the picture gets
through. Sorry for the file sizes being a bit large. Thank you, -RY
<I'd need a clearer image of the polyps to be sure... but as a red
Faviid or a Blastomussa, it will be treated the same (low light...
moderate (not too weak!) water flow. Best regards! Anthony> |
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Coral identity 3/20/03
can you guys help identify as to what kind of coral this is?
Jonathan
That would be a Lobophyllia... feed weekly too (needs more than the best lights
can give). Anthony>
Re: coral identity (part 1)
(pictures will be sent in 2 separate emails as otherwise my computer
automatically zips them)
can you guys help identify as to what kind of coral this is?
Jonathan
<Looks like a Lobophyllia to me. Please see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/mussids2.htm
Bob Fenner>
Lobophyllia
Hi, have any of you ever heard or seen of this type of branching brain
coral?
<Yep... Lobophyllia (hemprichii) form. Rather common. Hardy, handsome... and
all round nice guy as LPS species go>
I have attached a pic for reference. I never have and am wondering if
it is a true branching coral or a hoax?
<not true branching... simply phaceloid>
There is one on the net right now and am thinking of buying it but have never
heard of or seen one.
<a fine coral, but don't pay a premium for it. Average value as corals go>
Should I buy a bridge in Arizona first? Thanks, Jeff
<Dude... I'm in Pittsburgh. We have got some serious bridge action if you are
interested. Best regards, Anthony>
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