# How long until my coral starts growing?



## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

I've had the majority of my coral for 2-3 months and I havn't really noticed a significant increase in population. The size of the polyps and everything are getting bigger, but they havn't started to spread out. Does it usually take about 6 months for this to start to occur?

Also while I was away, my dad bought me a strange blue coral. Very pretty, but I was unable to find any info about it. He told me that the guy at the LFS said it was called a blue smurf coral (figures that I couldn't find anything about it on the net). It is really cool and that is the only coral that I can visible recognize it growing. It has blue "bulbs" at the end of each stalk and after a week or two, the bulbs fall off and then the coral grows new stalks and bulbs, while keeping the old ones. When my lights come on in the tank, I'll post a pic or 2.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

As far as growth goes, A lot depends on what the animal is, What you feed them, What kind of lighting and how long the lights are on. It has taken 6 months for my zoanthids to start spreading. Thats with Metal Halides 7 hours a day and actinics for 11. Also fed phytoplankton every other day.

More info is needed to provide a proper answer. Some grow faster than others. Some so slow it's ridiculous.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

Thanks for the advice.

Heres the pic


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## leveldrummer (May 27, 2005)

is that a pic with polyps open? does it have a hard body of soft? does it react and retract when you mess with it? any more info like that and any pics of it as it changes would help.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

The polyps are starting to grow back. It doesn't react if you mess with it. It feels "firm". It's not like touching pudding or a stick. It's inbetween, hard for me to describe. No changes yet, the polyps are only a little bigger, they havn't fallen off or gotten huge.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

Do you even know what it is? A person should never buy anything without researching it's needs first.

You also have yet to mention what if anything you feed, What lighting you have etc.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

My dad bought it for me while I was away. He asked the guy at the LFS and he said that it was safe and called something like the blue smurf coral. Honestly, I'm not gonna argue with him if he is going to do something for my tank which can save me some money. He told me that if it dies that its no problem. 

Right now i'm running pc, but i would like to upgrade to 150w or 175w metal halides (possibly with actinic supplements, depending on budget). I don't know if it is solely photosynthetic, but I turn off filtration and filter feed every 3-4 days.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

gdwb10101 said:


> Honestly, I'm not gonna argue with him if he is going to do something for my tank which can save me some money. He told me that if it dies that its no problem.


This is the part I have a huge problem with. If it saves you money, It doesn't matter if the animal suffers and/or dies.

I'm sorry but I can not support this way of selfish thinking. I'll let someone else that cares so little for an animals life answer your questions from here on out.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

I look at it as since the LFS could care so little that they dont even know the real name of the coral, I might as well give it more attention and try to help it out. That is why I am posting this, hopefully someone can help me out. I know that the LFS wont post questions about this.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

I know I said I wasn't going to help anymore with your attitude toward living animals but I'm bored sitting in this hospital bed.

I have done extensive research and found that what you have is shown healthy in the pic below. Yours are not health in the pic you provided.

Now this should get you started. When you decide to change your attitude about living animals I would be glad to help further. Until then, You are on your own.

Blue Smurf Palys


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

I believe its his father that has the bad attitude... and is the one buying something without researching. Always ask to go along with him!!! Also stay away from corals that you don't know anything about...


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

i wasnt in the same country! It was a surprise when i got home. And believe me i wasnt very happy. But then i realized that i might as well give it a shot since the guys at the LFS didn't know anything about it.

BTW i saw where you found the pic and it sure enough says blue smurf paly. BUT, is that all you are going by or is there any information about the blue smurf paly? I mean the guy at the LFS said it was the BSP, but that doesn't mean that is what it really is. That is what i've been calling it, because it is blue. Is this where you found the info? http://www.thefginc.com/

Here is an updated picture that is a little closer and can show how there are stalks. Also there is a stock in the middle which is clearly visible and isn't growing a bulb on it yet. It is the newest stalk. I don't think that I am treating it badly, because when i first received the coral, it had only 3-4 stalks now it has many more. Let me know if you still think that it is the blue smurf paly. I couldn't find any more info about it.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

Nope, That is NOT palys! Damn it, Back to my research. I have a thought though....I'll be back.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

Reefneck said:


> Nope, That is NOT palys! Damn it, Back to my research. I have a thought though....I'll be back.


I got it!! Making me work while in the hospital.

It is a Blue Tunacate Coral










The Blue Palm Coral originates from the shallow reefs of Indonesia and has a thick base with multiple branches, or stalks with asparagus-like heads. These asparagus-like heads are comprised of clusters of zooids that continually filter the water for food. It is common for the Blue Palm to drop their heads both during transit, and within the aquarium. During this time, the tunicate will cover itself with a clear mucous. This is not an indication of poor health. Within a short time, it will blossom and form new flower like heads. The Blue Palm is non-photosynthetic and has no lighting requirements, but should be placed in an area of strong water current. Though not nescessary (they eat dissolved matter), they will benefit from supplemental feeding with liquid plankton and other dissolved organic foods, as well as benefiting from the addition of iodine and trace elements. **Advanced Aquarist Species


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

I'll send you my bill.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

Thanks so much. I guess the problem is that I was always looking for the coral under the name blue smurf. How did you find it? Anyways thank you, thank you, thank you. 

For those looking into buying this coral:
The Blue Palm Coral originates from the shallow reefs of Indonesia and has a thick base with multiple branches, or stalks with asparagus-like heads. These asparagus-like heads are comprised of clusters of zooids that continually filter the water for food. It is common for the Blue Palm to drop their heads both during transit, and within the aquarium. During this time, the tunicate will cover itself with a clear mucous. This is not an indication of poor health. Within a short time, it will blossom and form new flower like heads. The Blue Palm is non-photosynthetic and has no lighting requirements, but should be placed in an area of strong water current. Though not nescessary (they eat dissolved matter), they will benefit from supplemental feeding with liquid plankton and other dissolved organic foods, as well as benefiting from the addition of iodine and trace elements. 

IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

gdwb10101 said:


> Thanks so much. I guess the problem is that I was always looking for the coral under the name blue smurf. How did you find it? Anyways thank you, thank you, thank you.
> 
> IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW


If I tell, I'll have to kill you. 

I don't manage an LFS for nothing.


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

Nice pickup and hopefully it makes it, those suckers are usually expensive. Make sure you have plenty of iodide and filter feeder food on hand.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

Well if I lived in your area, you'd have my business. My dad said he got it for $25. After looking at the price at one website which said $50 I guess he got a deal. Reefneck, I agree with you about researching before you buy, just to clarify anything.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

gdwb10101 said:


> Well if I lived in your area, you'd have my business. My dad said he got it for $25. After looking at the price at one website which said $50 I guess he got a deal. Reefneck, I agree with you about researching before you buy, just to clarify anything.


It's only what.....300 Miles up here to Jacksonville? Come on. 

Keep in mind the one thing you didn't quote in your post but is in mine....
The fact that this coral is an *ADVANCED AQUARIST SPECIES*!

Meaning that it is difficult to keep. Corals like that even I choose not to keep. I live by the K.I.S.S. rules and it works great for me. In fact, I'm going ape manure over Zoanthids, Palythoas & Ricordia currently and may just setup a tank just for those 3 types of animals. :fish:


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

Just make sure your tank is stable and you do as much research on it as you can. Just because it's labeled as advanced doesn't mean it's almost impossible to keep, trust me lol.

I'd love to have a blue tunicate coral, but not exactly too keen on paying 80 bucks for it to be shipped here though from a website. I'm mainly into soft corals/ filter feeding corals and inverts, most stony corals are somewhat..odd looking to me. So far from what i've seen, seachem's reef iodide is one of the best things i've ever bought for them. Place some of that in, mushrooms get twice as big and brighter, xenia splits about 4 times in 2 days of being in my tank, sea pens come out more, macro livens up, and stuff just starts growing more. That's why I suggested you have iodide on hand . Supposedly it helps with healing, growing, coloration, reproduction, etc. in most inverts and corals (especially soft corals, anemones, etc).


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

True. I did leave that out. 

Next time im in Jacksonville, ill stop by. What is the name of your store? 

Honestly, I have just been filter feeding and not done anything special and the coral is doing fine (or it appears to be). I guess I left it out because i'm not advanced and its doing well. Not to mean that the statement is wrong, becuase it probably is for advanced reef-keepers, but just saying that its going well.

BTW how is your seahorse tank? I was thinking about maybe doing a small 5 or 10g tank. I know absolutely nothing about them, so yes i will be doing some major research, but how is everything with that? Is there any special equipment that you need to buy for seahorses? Or is there a certain species which are eas*ier* to care for? Please let me know some basics or can you refer me to a good website? Mind you that if I do a seahorse tank, it will be started in the future. When the funds pick up again. 

I work as a soccer referee and would like to say that for those who are interested in the sport and would like some extra cash, it is something to look into. I usually do boys U15 and younger. When I do a center, the pay is $35 for like 1 hour and 10 min. And a linesman gets half of that, figure about $12-$13. Also, you get a workout at the same time! I'm tight on cash now because it's not in season...yet. In a couple weeks the money will begin to flow again and I will be more able to buy for my fish.


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## Reefneck (Oct 15, 2005)

I'm at Dan Co Fish Tails in Orange Park Fl. (Just outside Jacksonville) when I am not stuck in this Blasted Hospital.

Success with a coral is based over long term.....Years.....So being an Advanced Aquarist Species means that unless you know everything possible about it's needs it won't survive long. It may look good now but base that on appereance in 6 months to a year. Even the experts are not assured of keeping them alive for long.

Did you know that ALL Anemones are considered advanced species? In the wild, An Anemone would outlive us and our grandkids. People claim success if they keep one alive over a year in an aquarium. It's a shame really.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

True, i wish we could learn the secrets and keep all animals properly and let them live as long as possible. I hope that the coral survives for many years, but i have had it for a couple months and its doing better than when i received it. 

Off topic, but is there such thing as green coralline? I know about the purple, which i have a lot of, but what about green?


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## leveldrummer (May 27, 2005)

coraline comes in tons of colors, red, blue, green, yellow, i have tons of pink and purple on my rocks, but only green on my glass so far, its still a new tank, so im not too worried.


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

A 5-10 gallon tank won't cut it for most seahorses. Some like capensis, whitei, and dwarf seahorses can be kept in smaller tanks but they're harder then the bigger species. Capensis and whitei need a chiller (temp around the 60's) and are hard to come by, occasionally you MIGHT find some, but it's a rare chance. Dwarf seahorses need, emphasis on need, at least 2-4 feedings a day of BBS (baby brine shrimp) the thing that makes it even harder is the fact that they have to be 5 hours old or younger to provide any nutrition. While older brine shrimp do have some protein, fatty acids, etc. they aren't in numerous quantities to sustain a full, healthy lifespan.

If you plan on getting erectus, kuda, reidi (hardier and bigger species that are commonly found) you'll need a 29 gallon minimum.

Just remember they are not cheap. You'll end up paying 50 or more for a CB or captive bred specimen. And don't go looking at ebay or aquabid, that's not the greatest place to look. Not only do they sell just for color; something that they can change at any time, but they're quite possibly wild caught or tank raised. Your better off buying from a reputable dealer, etc. There are cheap captive bred black and white erectus on aquabid, but they're too small to be shipped.

Sorry I typed a lot but i'm bored and felt like typing . You can also check out my article on them and if your interested in dwarves, check out my profile on that also lol. I'm about to re-write the seahorse article so that may also be a possibility to look at. Seahorse.org is THE GREATEST place to start. Out of all the other forums dedicated to seahorses i've been to, this one is the most user friendly, informative, and easiest forum. They KNOW they're stuff, and are also more than willing to share it. Other ones are too power hungry and aren't that "knowlegable".

HTH!


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

Thanks so much for the info. I too like to type. The reason that i said 5-10 gallon tank was because i only was looking at the dwarf seahorses, which someone said could be housed in 5-10 gallon tanks. But i didn't know that they had to be fed BBS several times a day which would be quite hard considering I will be at school. 

Anyways, i am going to do some reseach about the larger species that you recommended. BTW flamingonhot, what kind of seahorse tanks do you have? Let me know b/c if it sounds cool, i might set one up like yours. Thanks again


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## flamingo (Nov 5, 2005)

Umm..right now I only have a 30 gallon tank with a male reidi in it (hippocampus reidi). I'd have more but I don't have much money and i'm saving up for a different project.

It's mainly black sand, live rock, some soft corals, three types of macro just starting to grow, and an HOB filter.

I'll try getting a picture of it...still can't find the camera.


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## gdwb10101 (Apr 14, 2006)

sounds good. The only question i have is that in the site you recommended and several other websites that i briefly visited, it said that sponge filters were better than some hob filters, because the hob are strong and may make too much flow or suck in the baby seahorses if they mate. Your thoughts?


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

yes the filter can suck BABY seahorses into them, however, if you go to www.seahorsesource.com you can get quality tank raised seahorses that are sexed (I chose all females) from Dan...


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