Show me the best encrusting monitipora!

[Dexters Reef]

When I got it it was 1.25" and was more of a horseshoe shape than a circle. I was actually a little upset it wasn't a perfect circle, and looked like a bite was taken out.

Have had it for about 4 months now, it has filled in the empty area, and is about 1.5-1.75" around, depending what points you measure from

 

[AcroporAddict]

It may not be considered the best, but I hope you enjoy the pics.

That monti looks like montipora aequituberculata. I have this, and it is one of the hardiest montis on the planet. Can become a pest if it likes your reef enough, like Idaho grape.

 

[CUNAReefer]

That monti looks like montipora aequituberculata. I have this, and it is one of the hardiest montis on the planet. Can become a pest if it likes your reef enough, like Idaho grape.

You are correct, AcroporaAddict! Its grown quite a bit. I dont have a good picture of it, but the monti has grown through the holes on the rack and encrusted parts of the under side of the rack. The monti next to it, Blueberry Sneeze from Lucid Props, has done a good job of keeping it in check. I also keep it in check whenever I clean the glass. My algae cleaner breaks off any growth that gets in its way when I'm cleaning the glass

Warmest Regards,
James

 

[DarthNater]

awesome pics guys. keep it up!!!

 

[DarthNater]

bump

 

[tmz]

Three I like:

 

[DarthNater]

whats the green one tom?

 

[DarthNater]

oh i noticed you are from seneca. i grew up on long point

 

[tmz]

The green with red polyps is a seasons greetings; the orange is a setosa and the other is a sand dollar. They all encrust but have also gown out into the water like an awning. I don't know long poin. West Seneca is a suburb of Buffalo NY.

 

[DarthNater]

oh ok i grew up on seneca lake.

 

[tmz]

Ok I lived near Seneca Lake for a number of years. I like the Fingerlakes. I grew up in Brooklyn and Queens NYC.

 

[derek.reef]

named this one starrynight montipora, never seen it before:

pokestar + superman

jedi mind tricks

Derek

 

[DarthNater]

i love the jedi mind trick. im thinking about when i start my tank up i am going to try and get a really big jedi mind trick colony going.

 

[derek.reef]

i love the jedi mind trick. im thinking about when i start my tank up i am going to try and get a really big jedi mind trick colony going.

the piece in the picture i posted is a 6month old 0.5" frag i dropped in there. it has been growing at an incredible speed, as does the mother colony in another tank. I have seen pieces of the same mother colony grow terribly slowly for others though.

I have also noticed that it has lost in every battle against other corals. Notably superman, birdsnest, pocilopora, mont cap, and millepora.

That is to say, it spreads quick and causes wars that it's going to loose all over the tank.

 

[DarthNater]

yea im thinking i will have a 3 seperate live rock sculptures. the middle being jedi and the others being different montis. that way they can encrust all of the rock that they are on. i want to make a simple but colorful tank.

 

[derek.reef]

yea im thinking i will have a 3 seperate live rock sculptures. the middle being jedi and the others being different montis. that way they can encrust all of the rock that they are on. i want to make a simple but colorful tank.

I've done that (with a zoa floor) I didn't want any 'spikes' or 'sharp' anything, in a relatively 'motionless' tank. got bored. added acros and millis.

careful! that ''amano style'' from the freshwater community contaminated my mind for a while, but I have yet to see it work in a reef tank

 

[mtaquarist]

I've done that (with a zoa floor) I didn't want any 'spikes' or 'sharp' anything, in a relatively 'motionless' tank. got bored. added acros and millis.

careful! that ''amano style'' from the freshwater community contaminated my mind for a while, but I have yet to see it work in a reef tank

Probably a dumb question... What is "amano style"?

 

[DarthNater]

well i will have a hammer coral and a pair of clowns. once the tank matures i will put in a bta for them.

 

[derek.reef]

Probably a dumb question... What is "amano style"?

google 'amano tyle' or 'amano tank' and you will see hundreds of examples. Put simply, it's letting 1 or 2 mains plants (in this case, corals) dominate the entire aquascape, while not 'dominating', at all, in the true sense of domination.

the intention is to create an aquarium that is enjoyable to look at, without focusing on details. which I found to be in absolute contradiction to what it is that is most interesting about sps, precisely the detail.

of course, one can have both. if you want beauty in detail, encrusting monti is a possibility, but if you also want beauty from far, then encrusting monti isn't the best choice. I've come to appreciate encrusting montis most from up close, i think most agree. whereas an acro, as you can understand, has a value of its own in both ranges.

 

[DarthNater]

you cant really find any saltwater tanks like that tho. atleast i couldnt.