Polyps

[ang_99]

Hey Anthony, quick question for you. I want to get colony polyps to spread and eventually cover as much of the back wall of my tank as possible. I realize you can just lean a covered rock up against the glass and eventually they will start spreading but I want to speed up the process by stategically placing a few in different spots along the back wall if possible. So what is the best way to remove them from a rock and get them to "stick" to the glass. Your help is appreciated.

Thanks
Angelo

 

[Anthony Calfo]

As described in the "Book of Coral Propagation" by some guy named Calfo (ha!... shameless plug... just shameless), you can simply take stoloniferous cnidarians (corals like Star polyp or encrusting gorgonians with a stolon mat, or simply polyps like Zoanthids connected by stoloniferous tissue of varying degrees) and pry them cleanly from a rock (a sharp chisel works well here).

Then, pat the back of the stolon mat dry and drain the tank very briefly where you'd like to fix them to the glass and simply superglue them in patches.

Always place the fixed coral at the lowest point you wish them to start growing (assuming there is sufficient light, water flow, etc there) since they can/will grow up to better light much faster than downwards.

best of luck!

Anthony