Favia or Favite? & What's the mucous?

[Jozlyn]

Could someone ID this for me please, I'd like to know if it is a Favia or a Favite.

Also I have not noticed that it doesn't have any sweeper tentacles, is this normal?

After feeding it is regularly covered in an white mucous (looks a bit like a thick spider web), which slowly falls away and drifts off, what is this, is this normal?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[graveyardworm]

I dont belive it is either a favia or favite, but I'm not too versed in LPS Id so I'll leave that for others. I'll bet though that if you put some food in the tank around lights out time and check a little while later you'll find it does have feeder tentacles. Are you feeding it at night or during the day? The mucas is a normal way for the coral to shed away undesireable stuff that has settled on it. What are you feeding it?

 

[Jozlyn]

I feed early evening around 5:30/6:00pm, lights go off at 9:30pm.

It probably gets bits of the general fish food, mysis, artemia, brine shrimp & flake.

Plus the mush mix I make for my Goniopora sp, which atm is just mushed artemia and flake until my Cyclopeeze arrives.

Glad to hear the mucous is nothing to worry about, it looks very unsightly though.

I was given the favia/favite ID in a different forum.

 

[acrodave]

i would guess maybe something in the candycane family

 

[Jozlyn]

No, not Candy Cane, they look totally different, each polyp is seperated on them.

 

[Sheol]

Not on all species Jozlyn, see my post down there on mine! But that looks more like a Blasto or other Mussid coral to me.
Well, whatever, its beautiful. Congrats!

Matthew

 

[Jozlyn]

Thanks Matthew

ID really like an ID on this one please, I thought I knew what it was now I'm completely confused!

 

[justincognito]

Very cool coral, Its hard to tell if its even a Mussiid or Faviid. Not Favites, maybe Favia, maybe Acanthastrea (I hate to suggest it because of fads). Unusual indeed. Any exposed skeleton would help settle this ID

 

[Jozlyn]

No exposed skeleton, sorry, each of the polyps is completely joined to the next, it is quite swollen in that picture, usually the areas between the polyps are quite smooth. Unfortunately my camera has decided to die, so I can't get any more pic's at the moment.

 

[justincognito]

If you can take a pic of totaly retracted and out of water that may help narrow it down.

 

[NirvanaFan]

It may feed at night. Check for feeding/sweeper tentacles about an hour or so after the lights go off. If the room it is in is bright, it may not put it's feeder tentacles out much at all. My platygyra needs a pretty dark room to extend it's tentacles all the way.

 

[CapitalO]

Thats a really nice coral I would definitely put my money on the Faviidae family. Hard to make a call on the genus though, maybe Favia. The polyps look a lot like Caulastrea to me. Regardless, its a great looking coral and its pretty uncommon to boot. Nice find indeed.

 

[Jozlyn]

I will try and get some more pictures of the coral tonight (I'll pinch hubby's work camera). All of the polyps appear to be joined together with no separation between them at all. It goes through some odd looking transformations when there's food in the water, but I still haven't seen any feeder tentacles, but I have seen the mouths opening. The picture doesn't do it any justice at all, it's a purple colour with vibrant green around each of the mouthes.

 

[CapitalO]

As was said before, the best way to get a positive ID is from a picture of the polyps retracted as much as possible. The skeleton is the best way to tell corals apart, especially when it comes to Mussidae (Acanthastrea, Micromussa etc.) and Faviidae (Favia, Caulastrea, Favites etc.)

When the polyps are extended, as in the first pic you posted, its sort of like a guessing game where you try to estimate the skeletal structure.

 

[Jozlyn]

Hope these pictures are ok

Out of tank, on a plate on the kitchen bench!

Underside skeleton

Close up of polyp

This polyp looks like it's about to explode!!

 

[justincognito]

My vote is for Faviid, most likely Favia

 

[reefknight]

Its a Favia for sure, which species I can't say for certain though. I have two totally different Favia's and this resembles one of mine, with exception to color. Mine has never mucoused up before, but if there is food in the water out come the tentalces. Nice coloration.

 

[CapitalO]

I agree as well. Family Faviidae; genus Favia for sure.

By the way, great job with the pic.

 

[Jozlyn]

Great, thanks guys. My hubby is a reporter for our local paper so I pinched his whiz bang camera to do the pic's with.

Still haven't seen any feeder tentacles tho! Oh well NM I'll just keep spying on it until I do!

Still can't work out how to make the colours look right tho, it's much prettier in real life.

 

[Sheol]

BTW, Candycanes (Caulastrea) are Favids.
Yes, definitely a favid of some type. Its hard to tell though for me if its Favia or another. Anyway its not Favites or Caulastrea.
Very nice pics BTW!

Matthew