3 different duncans, 3 different looks

[Coelli]

So far, duncans are my favorite coral. They're pretty, fluffy, add movement, aren't aggressive, are fun to feed, and seem to take everything in stride. I have 3 different duncans now and while I know there's only supposed to be one type of duncan, I'm finding like zoas that they can look very different. The colors in these photos don't do them justice (I had to turn off the blue LEDs as my iPhone doesn't play nice with them).

My first duncan has been in the tank for a couple of months. It's green in the center with light blue/purple blunt-tipped tentacles and sometimes inflates them when it's hungry:

The second duncan I added (on the right) a few weeks ago. It was purchased at Reef-A-Palooza. It's almost white, with green center and long, sharp tentacles. The branches are a bright yellow-green. It's much whiter than in the photo, it's getting some purple here from the light reflecting off the rocks.

The third I added yesterday; got it as a freebie when I bought two Kessils from my LFS. I'd been ogling their colonies for a while because they are so pretty. The branches and flesh are pink, and the ends of the tentacles are bright metallic green. I wish the colors showed up in these photos, seriously.

It'll be interesting to see if in a year or two they've started to homogenize in color, but I love the way they all look different right now!

 

[fearyaks]

Those are awesome! How often do you feed them? I feed mine about once or twice per week (just some targeted feeding of Mysis).

 

[nathan1986]

I myself have noticed duncans can look different. I dont own any but I want one. When im looking for a new coral I will shop around for weeks looking for just the right one. Ive seen about 4-5 different color variations of the duncan but have no idea if food/lighting or water conditions will cause the color variations. It'd be nice to know if they will stay that color for as long as you own them. Hope someone chims in with some info

 

[Coelli]

Those are awesome! How often do you feed them? I feed mine about once or twice per week (just some targeted feeding of Mysis).

That's about how often I target feed mine too, but I also broadcast Reef Roids a couple times a week and feed Rod's Food to the tank a couple times a week too (it's super messy and has "stuff" in it for corals too). So they're definitely well fed.

So far the new (pink) duncan is settling in great; it was fully open within an hour of being in the tank and I see it has a couple more heads on the way in addition to its 9.

I moved Mr. Stubby down from mid-tank to the same rock as the other two to see if the higher flow where they are makes any difference in its tentacle length.

I'm upgrading to a 65g in 2-3 weeks and then they'll get their permanent spots in the new tank. I'm really curious to see what a year or two of the same food, light (I'm putting Kessils on the new tank) and water parameters do to their color, whether they stay largely the same or start to look like each other! Honestly the color of the flesh and the way the pink one has green on the ends of its tentacles make me think there will still be some differentiation in the long term. I'll try to report back periodically.

And definitely, if I see another duncan that looks different from these 3 it's coming home with me!

Fearyaks, just noticed you're in L.A. - if you like the pink one, I got it from SPS Coral in La Canada and they had a few more mini-colonies like this one.

 

[markalot]

Wow, I really like the pink ones. I have a purple colony that's going on 2 years old, I got it back when everyone was convinced Duncans only came in one color.

They are so happy it's hard to see the disc but you can just make a couple out. These grow tree like and the stem was a bright green but lost a lot of color as it got shaded by all the heads.

Please keep us updated as they grow. I've heard some tend to change a lot based on the lighting but mine have been under LED and T5 and always remain the same color.

 

[Coelli]

Wow, I really like the pink ones. I have a purple colony that's going on 2 years old, I got it back when everyone was convinced Duncans only came in one color.

They are so happy it's hard to see the disc but you can just make a couple out. These grow tree like and the stem was a bright green but lost a lot of color as it got shaded by all the heads.

Please keep us updated as they grow. I've heard some tend to change a lot based on the lighting but mine have been under LED and T5 and always remain the same color.

Oh wow, your duncans are gorgeous!! My white one's stems are bright green too, and it's very "branchy" but it came to me that way so it could have been the conditions it grew in. My pink one is not branching at all really and having seen the parent colony, I know it was under Maxspect Razors with a lot of flow. We'll see what happens under the Kessils and I definitely want to keep them in higher flow; I'd read they like moderate-low flow, but now I don't think that's the case at all.

 

[markalot]

Oh wow, your duncans are gorgeous!! My white one's stems are bright green too, and it's very "branchy" but it came to me that way so it could have been the conditions it grew in. My pink one is not branching at all really and having seen the parent colony, I know it was under Maxspect Razors with a lot of flow. We'll see what happens under the Kessils and I definitely want to keep them in higher flow; I'd read they like moderate-low flow, but now I don't think that's the case at all.

I agree. My duncans are in high flow and love it. When I had them in lower flow in a smaller tank they would close up a lot more. I have some green duncans that are about the same age and they grow shrub like, very close to the sand, so I think there is definitely various branching "styles" as well.

 

[fearyaks]

Coe - thanks for the tip!!! My son plays club scoccer and we occasionally have tournaments out there. Next time he has a game out there I'll check it out.