gradth Posted September 5, 2009 Share Posted September 5, 2009 I have been eyeballing the coral frags at seahorse for a while now. I have not tried any corals other then a few zoas and such yet. Have been waiting for the tank to settle. Anyway, I picked out 3 of the 5 dollar frags. I have no clue as to actual names of the corals. The kid helping didnt seem to know either. So here are some pics, if you can Id them and give me any pointers it would be much appriciated. Im a major noob when it comes to corals, but Im ready to learn. Sorry for the pictures, but my Kodak blows. Staghorn Coral? SPS of some sort? Brain coral? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwcoralfarm Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 It appears you have 2 types of birds nest, top pic I believe is a pink birds nest "depending on your lighting" The bottom pic I believe to be a cyphastrea. Hope this helps:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancecobb1 Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 I would think birdsnest in the first pic? and in the second one also? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finch6013 Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 I would say the first two are deffinately Birdsnest. The first one might be a blue polyp. Hard to tell form the pic. The second is also a birdsnest i believe. I used to have an ORA Green Birdsnest that looked similar to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 I will have to see what they look like under the antics. The second one is blue under them. Any advice on care. Like I said, this is my test run into corals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finch6013 Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 what lights do you have? sps corals need good flow and a good amount of light. Usually halides Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 Ah, should have mentioned that. Running 250 watt halides with 10k bulbs. Coralifes I believe. PC with antic bulbs in them. They turn off when the halides come on. Run the halides for about 8 hours a day. Have pretty good flow, 2 Korila 4's, 2 3's and and 2 in there also. Not to mention the overflows and returns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 The first 2 are birdsnest. My Sour Apple BN is similar to the one in the second pic. It would be interesting to see what that first one looks like with a clear pic. Once I get the one I have growing well I plan to add another one something like the first pic. (Thinner branches with contrasting colored polyps) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finch6013 Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 sounds like you have good flow. what size tank? just my opinion but running the PC's while the halides are on might make your corals look better as well as running a 14k or higher bulb. 10k will give the best growth though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 sounds like you have good flow. what size tank? just my opinion but running the PC's while the halides are on might make your corals look better as well as running a 14k or higher bulb. 10k will give the best growth though 180 gallon tank(check my sig for tank build). Aqualite 6ft fixture. They are stock, and since they are still less then 6 months old I have not changed the bulbs. 10k's came with it. Still learning the bulbs(scratch). Right now I would be interested in healthy growing corals. The tank is right at about the 6 month mark. Not overly concerned with the looks right now, since they are just on a little make shift rack I made to house my frags while I learn what I can about them before I place them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowpunk Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 First is just a purple polyp birdsnest. Work it slowly from middle/top of tank to the highest point and it will love it. The second may be a birds nest but it looks more like a pocillopora to me. some can get thicker rounded tips and some stay thin like that. Birds nest or Pocillopora, you can start the same as the other birds nest and eventually get it all the way at the top. They love high light... My pocillopora and BN are both about 8" from the 400w MH bulbs... Pocillopora The 3rd is not a brain, it is a Povana coral. I have an orange one. They are pretty cool maybe midway up in your tank would be good. Povana corals Hope it helps... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 I just realized where these came from (and why the third one looks familiar). Be sure to start them low and move them up slowly. The lighting they are coming from is lower than what most of us are running and putting them too close to the lights will be a shock. The chalice I got from there didn't like the extra light midway up in my tank and almost turned white before I moved it down further in the tank. It's about a third of the way up now and while it still has some white around the edge most of the color has returned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 I have them on a little frag rack I made and stuck to the side of the tank for now. About half way up the tank. They seem to be doing good, all the polyps are opened up. The lighting at Seahorse seemed much less then mine, I think they were VHO's or something antic. Thanks for the input guys, this is the kinda stuff im looking for. Lots of knowledge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 Here us a pic for comparison of my Sour Apple BN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CA2OR Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 I like the sour apple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algae Posted September 6, 2009 Share Posted September 6, 2009 Yeah, that is a Pavona Maldivinesis. It should have it's polyps extended. I can't quite see yours clearly, but it appears to be slightly retracted. I just reread where yours are, so that is good. YOU BOUGHT IT FOR $5. You stole it!! The orange/gold variety seems to be more light sensitve than the green. I started out with mine all the way on the bottom and moved it up 4-5" a week. It was too fast, even though it came from a higher lighted tank. When it got about 7-8" below water level, the polyps retracted and it began to bleach, slightly. I've now got this placed near the bottom and I am going to move it VERY slowy up. I was lighting with a 6X 54 watt T5 on a 21" deep tank. If it starts to bleach slightly, move it down. Here is a excerpt from RC: Colonies of Pavona maldivensis are usually part encrusting, part massive and often have a foliaceous perimeter. They may be large (colonies over 1.5 m diameter have been seen in the Straits of Tiran, northern Red Sea), but are more usually less than 30 cm across. They are distinguished by having markedly plocoid corallites which reach 2 to 3 mm diameter and 1 to 2 mm tall above the corallum surface. This is mostly a clear water, fore-reef slope species. It is fairly abundant between 5 and 25 m deep, and is always seen on outer reef slopes in particular (Sheppard, 1998). Colonies are columnar, or thin horizontal plates, or mixtures of these. Corallites are circular, plocoid, usually of irregular sizes. Those near plate margins may be aligned in parallel rows. Colour: pale or dark grey-brown or green, sometimes bright orange . Abundance: may be common on upper reef slopes and outer reef flats. The columnar form is usually found where wave action is strong (Veron, 1986). Here is a link to my gold Pavona: http://www.pnwmas.org/forums/showthread.php?t=13764 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 6, 2009 Author Share Posted September 6, 2009 Pics under the antics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 16, 2009 Author Share Posted September 16, 2009 So im getting white spots on the tips of the birdsnest. To close to the lights, not close enough. Nitrates maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 New growth! Good job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 See the algae on the eggcrate? DINOFLAGELLATES! Better cut back on feedings, bump up the water level in the skimmer(skim a tad wetter) and siphon out as much as you can. It will take over your system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gradth Posted September 16, 2009 Author Share Posted September 16, 2009 See the algae on the eggcrate? DINOFLAGELLATES! Better cut back on feedings, bump up the water level in the skimmer(skim a tad wetter) and siphon out as much as you can. It will take over your system. So white is good? I thought it was dying tissue. Yeah, I pulled off my sock last week and since then im seeing more of that. Been fighting hair algae for a couple months now and its finally almost all gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowpunk Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Eric thought the same thing when he got birdsnest from me. It's one of the few corals that grows like that. Lots of white tips is a good thing on birdsnest(the pink style not green). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Trust me, Dino's are WORSE than hair algae. Your best bet is to use a small siphon and filter sock to get it out of the water column. You have some nutrient issues that are fueling the growth. I have had plenty of issues with Dinos and it's not easy to get rid of. What I recommended above is the only thing that worked for me to get rid of them. The Birdsnest is sprouting new branches. The white on the tips is new growth. If the dino's start sticking to the tips and growing then the tips will die off. So far I think it's a mild outbreak of Dinos from the picture. Siphon them out, do W/C's and skim wetter than usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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