zoa question!

[Ethan_W]

is each polyp of a zoa an individual organism? or if they are from the same branch and are connected is it all one organism? just asking because some of the polyps of my zoa dont get much light because they are trying to grow downward and get covered in shade by the bigger ones above them, and they lack the bright colors of the ones that do get light. so will they continue to grow and reach the light to brighten up?

 

[mak3mydae]

I was under the impression that all polyps of anything are somewhat individual, but there is a way that the entire colony can die? To answer your second question, it depends on how little light there is. Corals will grow in almost any direction that there is light and they will test out areas to see if there is enough light. If there isnt, they grow in a different direction. So if there is a lot of area with little light, the zoa's may stop growing there and just grow somewhere else. Someone else should chime in if i'm wrong haha

 

[Ethan_W]

well there is light, it just has to reach out for it, but there is about a half inch drop on the rock surface that it has begun to grow downward on and its been doing that for a week or 2. i guess it they look a bit bigger, and the tips that are getting some light have gained color

 

[Reef Bass]

Many corals are colonies of individual animals with tissue interconnecting them so each polyp can benefit from and contribute to the whole.

And oh yeah, the whole colony can perish together, although infection and death often start at one end and spread across the colony. Frequently one can frag off the healthy part as a way of preserving at least some of it.