Branching Orange Sun Coral

[gh0st]

How common are Branching Orange Sun Corals?

It's a little more Pinkish on the outside, and the polyps are very long and start branching as they grow outwards. Tentacles are a pretty typical Sun Coral Orange.

Looking for info, all I cam e across is that Black Sun Coral is often branching, but nothing about the Orange...

Any difference in care requirments?

 

[mikekman]

You don't see orange branching sun corals very often compared to the normal sun corals. Care requirements are the same, they require constant feeding and need normal to medium flow.

Also are you sure its a branching sun coral or perhaps a dendrophyllia arbusucula? The d. arbuscula almost looks like a branching sun coral.

I have the black branching sun coral and I will say this, it is a slow grower. I have been feeding mine nearly daily and it still hasn't grow too much flesh around it or had any babies.

 

[SDguy]

I have a single polyp (now several ) branching sun coral...

Just got a new colony of what I think is the same stuff....

 

[mikekman]

Uh oh, it looks like SDguy is getting hooked on sun corals!

 

[SDguy]

Hey, my little single guy is doing so well, I though I couldn't pass up the new ones for only $10!

 

[gh0st]

This one looks like SDGuys second picture, perhaps a little pinker, and all the sub branches are pretty small.

 

[SDguy]

Yeah, my single ones body is just as pink, but that pic was taken at night with a flash, so it looks orange.

 

[mikekman]

Killer deal you got on the other colony....$10:eek2: :eek2:

Are you feeding them daily or ? and what are you feeding them sdguy?

 

[ViPeR_930]

Can you get a picture of the colony Gh0st?

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10586631#post10586631 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikekman
Killer deal you got on the other colony....$10:eek2: :eek2:

Are you feeding them daily or ? and what are you feeding them sdguy?

The single polyp has been fed once a week at best, and still has branching babies. Not sure where this whole feed-once-a-day thing comes from....

 

[mikekman]

sdguy, you seem to have great success feeding them once a week. Other people have not had great successful feeding sun corals once a week and have to feed theres more often.. Your branching sun coral is only 1 head imagine 50 heads, once a week may not be enough for a larger colony.

Ghost, take a pic of the branching sun coral you are getting.

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10589370#post10589370 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikekman
Your branching sun coral is only 1 head imagine 50 heads, once a week may not be enough for a larger colony.

.

Ah, yes, and now we get into the interesting part....so what are you saying? At what point do various heads need feeding? I'm feeding one polyp maybe once a week, and it is sprouting babies left and right. Why would a larger colony require more frequent feedings, unless each head is not being fed, and the sharing of nutrients is not "going as far" as it should...

Feeding one head once a week should be no different than feeding 10 heads once a week, as long as each head, at that time, is getting fed, right?

This ties into the question I posted on another thread....at what point do the "babies" stop getting nutrients from the main polyp (if ever)?

 

[ViPeR_930]

IME, they'll keep sharing nutrients as long as there's tissue connecting the polyps.

 

[mikekman]

sdguy, I remember that thread and I can't find any evidence about when the polyps stop sharing nutrients.

Viper said he thinks that they will continue to share nutrients as long as their is flesh connecting the polyps. If that is true, then with a 40 head sun coral colony, you would really need to feed more than one head. One head sharing nutrients with 39 other heads would not really work and I suspect other heads would die. Thats too much demand. So what would work in that case would be to feed other heads on one day and then a few days later feed the other heads.

 

[gh0st]

Alas, the Branching Orange Sun Colony sold from the store I work at... probably better that way as I've already spent way too much on the ol' reef tank this check.

I did end up with a tiny little frag that broke off, so I'll see how he does and try and get a pic sometime soon.

Thanks for the info guys.

 

[ViPeR_930]

I was just interested in a pic to see if it's really a branching Tubastrea or actually D. arbuscula. They both look very much alike. Here's an arbuscula that I recently got.

 

[mikekman]

Very nice arbuscula Justin. Can't wait to see a pic of it when its nursed back to health and see it in all its glory. A lot of potential!

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10591338#post10591338 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikekman
sdguy, I remember that thread and I can't find any evidence about when the polyps stop sharing nutrients.

Viper said he thinks that they will continue to share nutrients as long as their is flesh connecting the polyps. If that is true, then with a 40 head sun coral colony, you would really need to feed more than one head. One head sharing nutrients with 39 other heads would not really work and I suspect other heads would die. Thats too much demand. So what would work in that case would be to feed other heads on one day and then a few days later feed the other heads.

That's a great idea!

Oh yes, I wasn't even thinking that extreme....yeah, one head feeding 39 others probably won't work

Here's my new colony. Since none have connecting tissue, looks like I'll be feeding each head....
Any ID specifics are welcome...

 

[mikekman]

sdguy, don't see any pics. Sign up for saltbucket.com Its like photobucket and is very easy to use. I want to see pics of that new sun coral you got.

Also, can you take some feeding shots?

 

[SDguy]

I'll mount the coral tonight, so I should be able to get some feeding shots in the next few days or so.....

I has already been opening though. Looks like it might be a different color when open than my single one...