Green star polyp problems please help.

[cantfindnemo]

I have had this green star polyp for around 5 months and has been doing great it opens on time everyday and is starting to spread too another rock as you can see in th picture. It is spreading to the rock on the bottom of the picture.

Now when I first got the rock it looked just like this with that brown patch as you can see and I just thougth this is where it was spreading. I was right becuse a little while after I got it I could see little baby polyps coming out of the brown patch so I was like great.

Now as you can see it is starting to turn white this is not the first time it has done but the second time. The cycle went like this 1st I saw babys in the brown patch then it turned white babys went away, then the white went away the babys came back and started all over again. Here is what it looks like right now.

What is it? Is this normal what is happening?

 

[James77]

It looks almost like another coral is growing on top of the GSP

 

[cantfindnemo]

Bump

 

[jaymz101]

Id say James is right. Looks like Montipora or pocillipora is growing over the GSP and from your description, neither is winning the battle.

 

[theop]

I would agree 100% with the above. The GSP grows by sending out it's purple skirt. The brown/white areas are not GSP, but some encrusting stony coral (looks like montipora).

I'd break the rock in half or you will probably have this constant turf war between these two corals.

 

[cantfindnemo]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7558256#post7558256 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by theop
I would agree 100% with the above. The GSP grows by sending out it's purple skirt. The brown/white areas are not GSP, but some encrusting stony coral (looks like montipora).

I'd break the rock in half or you will probably have this constant turf war between these two corals.

But it is spreading just fine, you can see it spreading on the bottom part of the picture. It is just that one area that is haveing the problem...you would still break it in half?

 

[theop]

The GSP will be fine either way.

The live part of the SPS is brown while the white part is the calcifed skeleton where it is dead or dying. If you want to save and propagate the SPS part then break the rock. If you don't care about that part and only want the GSP, then I'd leave it alone.