Starburst monti cap

[Kaman8]

I can't find much info on the internet about the starburst. I bought a frag 2 weeks ago, but the polyps are very small and doesn't want to extend much and the color is not that bright anymore like when I bought it. My light fixture is 150 watt full spectrum led and I have it set to white 40% , blue 97% , RB 100%. I have placed the frag 13" below the light and with high random flow. Do you think it need another placement ?

 

[GroktheCube]

How are the other caps in your tank doing? I don't have any experience with this particular color morph, but IME, moti caps are happy just about anywhere.

 

[barry_keith]

I keep my starburst in the bottom 1/3 of my 31" tall tank. Great color and growth.

 

[jdamon]

I have a starburst monti, and it was very small to start. It took a few months before it "settled in", but now its growing like mad! I have LEDs also. Just give it time, and try not to move it unless it's appears obviously unhappy (polyps retracted for days, loss if all color etc.) and if that happens put it on the bottom or on a rack on the tank perimeter until it shows signs of life again.

 

[Reefvet]

They should always have some polyp extension but it's not huge. They like light and good flow.

 

[Kaman8]

They should always have some polyp extension but it's not huge. They like light and good flow.

My polyps are much smaller then in the pic and when the light is at full power it almost retract all the polyps.

 

[Kaman8]

I have a starburst monti, and it was very small to start. It took a few months before it "settled in", but now its growing like mad! I have LEDs also. Just give it time, and try not to move it unless it's appears obviously unhappy (polyps retracted for days, loss if all color etc.) and if that happens put it on the bottom or on a rack on the tank perimeter until it shows signs of life again.

Maybe I should try to placer it on the bottom of the tank and see if it's gets better, but the problem is......I don't have much flow on the bottom.

 

[Reefvet]

This is a small tank I use to grow out frags. You can see a couple of montis here. Flow is very high and it's giving the Starburst a nice shape. This one has full polyp extension all the time.

 

[Kaman8]

This is a small tank I use to grow out frags. You can see a couple of montis here. Flow is very high and it's giving the Starburst a nice shape. This one has full polyp extension all the time.

Is it under very bright light?

 

[barry_keith]

Here's mine. Hard to capture its nice colors with phone and led light. Started as a very small frag. I've had it a year now. Roughly 4.5x5". Grown under led

 

[Kaman8]

Here's mine. Hard to capture its nice colors with phone and led light. Started as a very small frag. I've had it a year now. Roughly 4.5x5". Grown under led

What is your placement of this coral? How many inches is it below you light and at what setting did you set your led? Does it have high or moderate flow?

 

[barry_keith]

Bottom 1/3 of my 31" tall tank. About 5" from the bottom of the tank. Close to 36" from my lights. Moderate flow. Leds are set at 40% white / full spectrum and 100% blue.

 

[Kaman8]

Bottom 1/3 of my 31" tall tank. About 5" from the bottom of the tank. Close to 36" from my lights. Moderate flow. Leds are set at 40% white / full spectrum and 100% blue.

I think this species like lower light. I will move it to the bottom of the tank and see if the polyp will extend more and the color will brighten back up.

 

[Reefvet]

I think this species like lower light. I will move it to the bottom of the tank and see if the polyp will extend more and the color will brighten back up.

In the second photo I posted above there are Kessil A350ws and a Reefbrite actinic lighting the tank. The PAR is 170 at the sand where the Starburst is growing under a very high alternating current.

That frag is growing fast and has full polyp extension.

Alk 7.5
CA 460
MG 1600
pH 7.9-8.2
NSW at 35 ppt.

I think they will grow in low light, but very slowly. The coral farmer I bought this from has them under T5s and they grow very flat and slow. They're beautiful but don't have nearly the same variation in form and polyp extension is much less. They are also using ASW.

 

[Reefvet]

Another way to describe the light level in the second photo, the orange Setosa is almost pink and has nearly white tips of growth. It's trippled in size in less than 3 months. That's very fast growth for a Setosa. The shape is also much more varied, again the high current.

 

[brad65ford]

This is a small tank I use to grow out frags. You can see a couple of montis here. Flow is very high and it's giving the Starburst a nice shape. This one has full polyp extension all the time.

I'm running the same lights as you and my setosa is the same pale color. :angryfire: Going try MH to see if the different in sps colors (especially montis since they are my fav :headwally:

 

[msaba]

I keep mine 4 inches under LED lighting (par 600) and grows quite rapidly. I also keep a frag in lower light that grows well but the yellow polyps are not as prominent. THe original reef tech frag was also under very high lighting to my understanding. EIther way, this cap is fairly adaptable it appears"¦

Mark

 

[IndyMatt]

Man I got to get a frag of that one!

 

[jackson6745]

I got rid of my colony, but it always had the best colors in low lighting in a well fed tank. If you keep a low nutrient system and blast it with light, polyps extension will be very poor from what I have seen and experienced.

 

[Reefvet]

I'm running the same lights as you and my setosa is the same pale color.

The entire photo is overexposed and so everything looks a little washed out. My setosa isn't washed out at all. It's tripled in size in under 3 months.