Hedgehog Coral (Echinopora mammiformis)

[DMBillies]

We dropped into the Critter last night and happened upon a hedgehog coral in the back. It was sharp and we got it at a very reasonable price. It's nice little gems like this that make dropping in on fish stores fun.

In doing some searches for the coral I think it is an Echinopora mammiformis, but the grow pattern does not seem quite as jagged as some of the other pictures I found (it's also way cooler looking... at least according to me judging from the pictures... than the Tyree LE mammiformis). Anybody know anything about these? Gary... Corals of the World synopsis and/or ID please

I was kind of surprised it made it through a whole Saturday...

 

[fallinapart]

Nice find. It looks like you took the pics under actinac lighting, if so what color is the coral in daylight?

Norman

 

[DMBillies]

That is daylight... that's actually pretty close to the real color but I think it is giving the image a bit of a blue shift even with the aquarium setting on. It is teal with a little more purple where it is growing and neon green eyes. I've not seen many corals with a darker teal color like this and the areas around the mouths give it little shadows for a nice textured look. It is a nice sized piece too (probably a bit better than 6" from top to bottom).

The actinic shots came out like crap because the blue messes with the camera and makes the coral blend in to the background. The color doesn't change much under actinics, but the "eyes" do pop.

 

[gflat65]

Awesome find, Brian. Definitely Echinopora. On species, check out ashmorensis-don't really think it is this one since this one looks like it is all branch form (not seeing any pics of submassive growth), and gemmacea (looks pretty similar to me-says they are laminar colonies, but they sometimes form contorted branches-main pic in COtW is a rolling form with bumps here and there and looks a lot like yours). E. mammiformis and E. horrida both look spikier than yours. I'm thinking E. gemmacea. I'd love a piece of that when you decide to knock one off.

I picked up a huge Echinopora lamellosa from the Critter several years back that was very similar to the Tyree blue chalice (not as bluish, but close). It sat there for three or four weeks before I made it back in to grab it.

 

[ocd_mariner]

Oooh!

Shotgun first frag!

 

[gflat65]

I think I beat cha to shotgun, Slater-san.

 

[ocd_mariner]

Drat!

Both threads I posted in just now had a zillion replies between when I started to post and when I hit the button.


Dont think this is over gary!

 

[DMBillies]

Yeah, Chuck, gflat ninja'd ya.

As far as frags, I definitely want to let it settle in for a while before I chop it, but I am always of the mind set that it is nice to have at least a few pieces out there so that there is a better chance of the coral surviving long-term. It only takes one tank crash to wipe a coral out if you only have it in one tank. The first frags have to come with a replacement guarantee for if I ever lose it I doubt it will be a superbly fast grower, but if it is I'll gladly spread the love even more.

I'd say you might be right on the gemmacea. Only thing that really seems off is that the individual polyps are not as defined as they are in the pictures... they are more rounded "bumps" and less defined than most of these pictures. Still probably the best guess I have right now. (http://www2.aims.gov.au/coralsearch/html/101-200/Species%20pages/140.htm)

I'd agree with you that it is not the ashmorensis or horrida... definitely too "branchy" (ashmorensis - http://www2.aims.gov.au/coralsearch/html/401-500/Species%20pages/409.htm; horrida - http://www2.aims.gov.au/coralsearch/html/101-200/Species%20pages/142.htm)

 

[gflat65]

Just got finished reading the two Shogun volumes by James Clavell (and had my head stuck in Dazed and Confused for the -Slater-san). I'd recommend Shogun to anyone interested in samaurai culture. It's a ficticious book, but I think the culture was supposed to be pretty accurate. Easy to read and I found it very interesting. I expected more at the end, but shigata na gai.

I see what you're saying, Brian. Maybe it is just adjusting, still? I know I've seen some LPS look plumper at times than others (sometimes on the other side of the same piece-diff light/flow, etc.). The other species either seemed almost all submassive, or were too sharp around the polyp (don't you love the scientific jargon).

 

[commonstranger]

Brian I almost bought that piece I'll post a pic of the one I got instead. Have to be honest though if I had the money I would have got both. Hope it does great for you.

 

[crumbletop]

Really nice looking coral, Brian!

 

[DMBillies]

Chris said that a few guys from the club were through on Saturday, so I figured at least a few guys had a look at it. As I expand my collection and replace some of my starter corals, I'm trying to find interesting pieces that are fairly uncommon (at least in the hobby) but still really cool looking... which is often not easy to do unless you're willing to shell out the $$$.

It's not like this was free, but if some big named guy got a hold of it, put "limited edition" before the name, and started farming it, a 1" frag would probably cost me more than I paid for the whole coral. In that sense, I'm tickled with it.

Rhett... would love to see what'cha got.

Would also love to see some new acquisitions from the chatty swap from everyone.

 

[gflat65]

I'll work on some pics of my Chattanooga loot. Dr. Mac had some really nice stuff (as well as the fishdoc store and the Revhtree store).