Why do my two hammers look so different

[Caleb Kruse]

I bought one Branching Hammer coral around thanksgiving and this is what it looks like

And I bought this one a couple days ago because it was an amazing deal.

See how different they look, are they different species?

 

[deanos]

The first is Euphyllia paradivisa, while the second is E. parancora

 

[Caleb Kruse]

That would explain it. How could you tell.

 

[deanos]

Frogspawns (1st) typically have multiple 'knobby' tips on its polyps, while Hammers (2nd)typically have an anchor shaped tip. There are variations, where the polyps reflect both characteristics making identification much more difficult.

 

[drummereef]

Their are morphs like deanos said. Sometimes it's really hard to tell. Your first pic looks like one of those examples.

 

[E&Js]

Yeah, looks like #1 is def a frogspawn. Mine looks identical. Notice the 'knobs' at the end of arms.

 

[dendro982]

Branching hammers also can look different (unless I mixed Latin names with not branching kinds ) On the picture below, the top row - Euphyllia fimbriata
Quote:
E. fimbriata species had T-shaped tentacle or polyp ends while ancora's were curved
Link to the article

Bottom: frogspawn - Euphyllia paradivisa.