Monti Cap Polyps

[Janetsplanet]

I'm still pretty new to reefing, and worried over everything. Just wondering if anyone has experienced monti cap growing polyps on the underside? They didn't pop up overnight, but slowly over the last several weeks. Thoughts on what is causing this? Anything I should watch for?

It did not have polyps on the underside when I bought it, reasonably sure these are polyps, and not nudis or nudis eggs. They have a definite flower like shape.

I get good growth/color, so I don't think they're starving and I don't see any damage from nudis, or any obvious creepy crawlies. The purple monti cap to the right exhibits the same characteristic as the red.

65g Apex Mixed Reef System with heavy skimming.
2 - Radion Pro 3 at 65% with a 10hr lighting cycle w/ 2hrs ramp on/off.
Temp: 77.8-78
Salinity: 34ppt
Ca: 410-420
MG: 1400
Alk: 8.6 dkH
pH: 8.3
No detected PO4 or NO3 with ReSea test kit

 

[SputnikNYC]

Monti Cap Polyps

Radion 15 or 30?

But yeah, polyps anywhere on a coral is good.

 

[Janetsplanet]

Radion 15 or 30?

But yeah, polyps anywhere on a coral is good.

Radion 30.

I get good polyp extension on the top of the monti caps too. Just wondering if maybe it's creating more polyps because it doesn't get enough to eat or something? Survival mech to try to catch more food?

I feed "reef bugs", which definitely pods eat because if I don't feed this particular food, the pod population in my reef suffers at least a little. So something eats it for sure, but no idea if the monti cap is actually eating anything at all, or what to feed.

I know they're at least in part photosynthetic, but I've also heard that most corals need actual nutrition as well as good lighting.

 

[Reefvet]

Your Monti is simply morphing as it grows. It does this based on the flow and light that's available to it. The bottom was the bottom in the last place it lived. That doesn't mean it can't grow, it just didn't have any flow or light on that side in the prior habitat.

Monti's need good water with consistent parameters to grow. They'll consume some food from polyps but it's not needed.

I've been growing them for nearly 30 years. Love em and hate em.