How to tell if

[degibson84]

A montipora is actually still alive?

I bought an Idaho Grape Montipora and am not really sure if it is living. It has a very faint purple color but I have never seen any type of polyps on it.

 

[sahin]

A montipora is actually still alive?

I bought an Idaho Grape Montipora and am not really sure if it is living. It has a very faint purple color but I have never seen any type of polyps on it.

Any colour means its still alive. Even if its bleached white it can still make full recovery.

If algae or brown dusting starts to grow then you know the flesh is gone and it is long dead. Till then, if its quite bleached, locate it somewhere low in the tank and it will recover.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Do yo have any pics?

 

[degibson84]

just took this pic. hard to tell true colors with a cell phone. it is about the color of pink coraline algae. there is a brown spot on it but for the most part it is pink and the edges are more of a darker color

 

[degibson84]

anyone?

 

[sahin]

Cant tell from that photo because the blue has washed out...the rocks looks blue...the coral looks blue, but I did download the image and adjust it in photoshop and I can see that on the right hand side of the coral there is algae/film algae growing.

The image contains almost no light in the red channel and so very hard to tell.

Can you turn off the blue channel/blue lights and take a photo with just white tube/white LED etc?

IMO I think the coral is still largely alive, there is some die off on the right hand side.

You need to figure out why this has happened. Have you tested all the basic parameters?

 

[degibson84]

this was the way the coral looked when I received it from a local reefer.

 

[sahin]

this was the way the coral looked when I received it from a local reefer.

Cool. Just let the coral do its thing. In a healthy tank that will recover in a few weeks.

PS did you dip/inspect etc before you put into your tank?

 

[degibson84]

yes I dipped with kent Tech-D

 

[pugman]

It looks alive to me

 

[animalkingdom]

looks alive... dead montis look bone white. another way to tell is to take it out of the tank and smell it. while not as pungent as acros, montis have a distinct smell that will be absent if they are dead. i'm not kidding...this is the best live dead test there is