I got this purple rimmed montipora sp. about 2 1/2 years ago. Here are some growth shots and color changes under different lights.
This is when I first got it in November 2003. The guy I got it from was having some trouble with his tank at the time, but it was under 250W 10K bulbs. I don't remember exactly what tank trouble he was having, but i think it wasn't getting a ton of light...
I put it into my 26g show tank. This picture was in February 2004. It was lit by 3 x 95W VHO's. 2 x Reefsun (?) and 1 actinic. The color was really nice under this set up.
I now have it in my 90g tank. This was in January, 2006. It is pretty high in the tank with the top being just 4" under the water, under a 250W DE Phoenix 14K bulb.
The take-away i get from these photos is that this coral does way better under less intense lighting. The growth edge was getting super purple under VHO, but the coral turns almost completely green when under intense MH lighting. I would love to put it lower in the tank, but it is so big that i'd have to re-aquascape the entire tank to accomodate it. I might end up fragging it, but not sure yet.
Also, notice the golden birdsnest that shows the growth between photos 2 and 3...
This is when I first got it in November 2003. The guy I got it from was having some trouble with his tank at the time, but it was under 250W 10K bulbs. I don't remember exactly what tank trouble he was having, but i think it wasn't getting a ton of light...
I put it into my 26g show tank. This picture was in February 2004. It was lit by 3 x 95W VHO's. 2 x Reefsun (?) and 1 actinic. The color was really nice under this set up.
I now have it in my 90g tank. This was in January, 2006. It is pretty high in the tank with the top being just 4" under the water, under a 250W DE Phoenix 14K bulb.
The take-away i get from these photos is that this coral does way better under less intense lighting. The growth edge was getting super purple under VHO, but the coral turns almost completely green when under intense MH lighting. I would love to put it lower in the tank, but it is so big that i'd have to re-aquascape the entire tank to accomodate it. I might end up fragging it, but not sure yet.
Also, notice the golden birdsnest that shows the growth between photos 2 and 3...
