treesprite July 19, 2011 Share July 19, 2011 (edited) Idaho grape monti with GREEN polyps in my tank! I have dozens of tiny bits of this IG monti in my tank that are from what I couldn't pry or scrape off the rock when I was trying to clear some space a while back, and a couple dozen tiny bits that I glued all over a piece of rock that are now encrusting on that rock (an experiment of sorts). I was looking in the tank a little while ago and saw green around the edges of some of them. I thought at first that it was specks of the green sponge that rows in my tank, but upon closer examination, saw that it was specifically around these pieces of monti. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, kept trying to figure out what it is on the edges of the pieces that "looks" like green sps polyps but couldn't possibly be, because IG monti does not have green polyps it has purple polyps. I put in a search on google and came across an archive RC post someone had made about an IG monti with green polyps, and people were questioning whether or not it was actually that type of coral. I don't see any other listing about it (only checked the first 3 pages, but....). Crappy pics, but you can see the green (I think). These are very tiny pieces of coral (see snail in second pic for size reference), and my camera isn't good enough to do that clear of a closeup that is that close up. with different light I will note about color that suddenly the pale pink sponge (that I hate) around my tank, is now a bright pink that makes me appreciate it more. I can't think of anything different other than the fact that I changed my refugium to a different tank. Edited July 19, 2011 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squiddly July 19, 2011 Share July 19, 2011 Idaho grape monti with GREEN polyps in my tank! I have dozens of tiny bits of this IG monti in my tank that are from what I couldn't pry or scrape off the rock when I was trying to clear some space a while back, and a couple dozen tiny bits that I glued all over a piece of rock that are now encrusting on that rock (an experiment of sorts). I was looking in the tank a little while ago and saw green around the edges of some of them. I thought at first that it was specks of the green sponge that rows in my tank, but upon closer examination, saw that it was specifically around these pieces of monti. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, kept trying to figure out what it is on the edges of the pieces that "looks" like green sps polyps but couldn't possibly be, because IG monti does not have green polyps it has purple polyps. I put in a search on google and came across an archive RC post someone had made about an IG monti with green polyps, and people were questioning whether or not it was actually that type of coral. I don't see any other listing about it (only checked the first 3 pages, but....). Crappy pics, but you can see the green (I think). These are very tiny pieces of coral (see snail in second pic for size reference), and my camera isn't good enough to do that clear of a closeup that is that close up. I will note about color that suddenly the pale pink sponge (that I hate) around my tank, is now a bright pink that makes me appreciate it more. I can't think of anything different other than the fact that I changed my refugium to a different tank. That's almost exactly what I have in my tank on some live rock. I tried to add a picture of it, but when I use the IMG tag, it tells me I'm not allowed to use that tag on this board. Very confusing. My picture of it is also quite crappy but it looks the same as yours. I've been told they're hydroids or "something else." I'd like to know what they are too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 20, 2011 Author Share July 20, 2011 These are the coral's polyps which are supposed to be purple but are green... they are not anything separate from the coral. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbartco July 20, 2011 Share July 20, 2011 Many theories about zooxanthellae exchange within the corals in a reef tanks. (Probably some real scientific paper Henley has posted in the past. ) I'm sure there is plently of cthe proteins that cause the colors to exchange as well. The new LE Treesprite Joker Monti Cap. (now in the $10 section!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 21, 2011 Author Share July 21, 2011 Many theories about zooxanthellae exchange within the corals in a reef tanks. (Probably some real scientific paper Henley has posted in the past. ) I'm sure there is plently of cthe proteins that cause the colors to exchange as well. The new LE Treesprite Joker Monti Cap. (now in the $10 section!) LOL. Can't name it until it has been proven to be a real morph, not just something in my tank causing a transient color change. So far there are several different chips of the coral with green polyps. A couple people just got frags from me at Frag Fest - those frags didn't have any green polyps (didn't realize any did until yesterday), but I hope they let me know if green polyps show up. Who wants to take a chip with green polyps to see what happens in a different tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&Fmgr July 21, 2011 Share July 21, 2011 (edited) Many theories about zooxanthellae exchange within the corals in a reef tanks. (Probably some real scientific paper Henley has posted in the past. ) I'm sure there is plently of cthe proteins that cause the colors to exchange as well. The new LE Treesprite Joker Monti Cap. (now in the $10 section!) see doug, only a feww days without your purse, ahem, I mean satchel...and youre making jokes!!! EDIT: thats really cool forrest, id be really curious to see what it looks like every couple of weeks. tagging along Edited July 21, 2011 by F&Fmgr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowieReefer84 July 21, 2011 Share July 21, 2011 The frag I got from you a while back is growing very nicely. I will have to break off a couple pieces, and move them around the tank. Haven't looked close enough to see the colors of the polyps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 22, 2011 Author Share July 22, 2011 Glad it's doing ok! Let me know if any green polyps come up. I would like to research more into what Doug was talking about, with the proteins. I think a while back a speaker at a meeting mentioned something of that nature, but I can't remember who-what-when. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 31, 2011 Author Share July 31, 2011 (edited) I sent an email to WetWeb Media last week, and so have emailed back and forth with Bob Fenner a couple times. His final statement was, "I'd bet most anything that this colony is NOT ALL Montipora. Bob Fenner" Who sold me this coral, anyway? Edited July 31, 2011 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 31, 2011 Author Share July 31, 2011 (edited) I figured out that I got my Tyree LE Idaho Grape Monti frag from Copps (John Coppolino) in April of 2008. I sent him a PM to ask about his parent colony's origin, but I haven't seen him around here for a while. Those who read my other post, already know that I've been seeing green polyps on mine. Current conjecture is that this coral might not be a pure IG monti, and possibly not even completely a monti. It could have already had this oddity just not revealed before now, or there could have been some weird protien exchange in my tank. In the event that John doesn't answer, is there anyone who got a frag from him from the same parent colony, who either knows the origin of John's colony or has seen green polyps on their frag (probably colony by now)? If you got a frag from me, please tell me if you have seen any green polyps on it! I am not sure what the fate is of my green-polyed chips because of the situation with the aquascaping in my tank - will have to check later today to make sure they didn't get destroyed (I sure hope not!). Thanks for any info you can give! Edited July 31, 2011 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 July 31, 2011 Share July 31, 2011 Corals can mutate despite what their origin is. The colors will be different in different tanks and with different nutrient levels as well. A coral that looks one way in someone else's tank can look completely different in someone else's tank depending on the husbandry. I've had corals that looked awesome in other people's tanks that looked awful in mine and then I've had the opposite as well. As far as origin of his, I'd look up one of his sale threads - he usually has that on there. Also, if he called it a Tyree, it's probably from Tyree or one of the first to get it from Tyree as John's stuff is usually from the original source. He's usually got first dibs on a lot of stuff as well because of his connection with other reefers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 31, 2011 Author Share July 31, 2011 (edited) This isn't a matter of the coloration of the coral as a whole. My water chemistry and quality have not changed (at least not in a way I can detect). The green polyps came up suddenly, not a gradual color change. The coral's tissue color is not suddenly different. The green polyps are not only a drastically different color, but are also larger. They are in new growth areas only, while the polyps in the old growth areas are still the normal-looking tiny purple ones. Only some of the pieces are showing these green polyps. These look like green pocillopora polyps in color and size. I sent an e-mail to Reeffarmers to ask if there were other reports of green polyps. Bob Fenner is the one who conjectured that it might not be completely a monti. Edited July 31, 2011 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS July 31, 2011 Share July 31, 2011 I got the IG monti from Copps years ago. I've grown it out extensively and never had any green polyps on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 August 1, 2011 Share August 1, 2011 Take a look at how many rainbow montiporas don't stay rainbow and end up looking like pokerstars or other similar corals. If the polyps themselves have changed shape and structure that's a whole different ballgame, but if they are simply different in size that could simply be a factor of flow. That said, it's not unheard of for corals to grow together or to exhibit some odd growth when mixed with other corals, just not very common. John had one in his tank that had a single branch that was a different color from the rest of the colony. I remember seeing your picture the other day in the other thread but seem to recall that it wasn't very easy to see, any chance you have another picture to post? Would be interesting to see this coral up close in more detail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 August 1, 2011 Share August 1, 2011 Here's a picture from one of his sale threads - this one is growing into the other coral next to it, looks to be another plating montipora, could be that yours had some vestiges of this on it when you got it and that's what resulted in the "bonus" coral. I would guess that you'd need a corallite and polyp examination to be sure of any hybridization, though, versus simply having a different kind of coral growing where there were some residual pieces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite August 10, 2011 Author Share August 10, 2011 I got an e-mail from Steve Tyree (still need to reply to him). He said: We have seen quite a few cases where the green from Pocillopora corals have been grafted into other corals. Very interesting! I hope I can get some more info about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copps August 10, 2011 Share August 10, 2011 Hey Forrest, that is cool! I've had the IG monti since 2003, the year Reef Farmer's first distributed it... in my 2004 Reef Central TOTM you could already see a good sized colony... I've distributed a ton of frags of this fast growing and beautiful coral and never seen that! It's got to be a result of grafting... the IG monti took in the pigments from someone else (a green Poci is a good candidate as they're notorious for polyp bailout!)... as a matter of fact I wouldn't be surprised if my 3 and 6 year old kids have some Pocillopora in them! Were these small pieces bleached out or stressed? Are only the new growth polyps taking on the color? Copps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite August 11, 2011 Author Share August 11, 2011 (edited) Hey John, thanks for responding! If you look at my thread titled "What" you will see the whole story. I posted on that thread my response from Steve Tyree (about to check my email to see if there's another...) Hey, can an officer combine the threads somehow under some kind of title appropriate to the entire topic? Now, to answer John's question: The chips with the green polyps were the tiny pieces that, after removing the very thoroughly encrusted colony from a large piece of rock, I had to chip and scrape to get off of that rock. So they were indeed very thoroughly traumatized and injured! I superglued a couple dozen chips to a small rock - many have the green polyps, mostly on their perimeters but here and there are polyps on the main bodies of the chips. There are still bits remaining on the big piece of rock I could never remove all of the coral from - some of those also have green polyps on them... they got messed up in my recent aquascaping mishap but are still living, just too scraped up to tell now if they are still going to have the green polyps. The pieces that were small frag sized rather than tiny chips, are not showing green polyps, so maybe they were just not compromised enough to be affected. The chips are so small though.... I just hope they continue to grow and show the green polyps, then I can frag them and share the interesting phenomenon with the rest of WAMAS. Edited August 11, 2011 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami August 11, 2011 Share August 11, 2011 Topics merged and re-titled for you, Forrest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite August 11, 2011 Author Share August 11, 2011 Thanks Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite August 14, 2011 Author Share August 14, 2011 I heard from Steve Tyree again after having sent him a picture. He seems to think it's a grafting simplex. He said I problably have something unique. I want it to hurry up and grow so I can get a piece in someone else's tank as preservation insurance. It would be a shame to lose something unique. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite April 18, 2012 Author Share April 18, 2012 (edited) Update: The off color polyps bits of IGM re-growing on the back side of my liverock (where I can't get a picture) are still obviously green. As far as all the frags grown from little chips, the green has faded to pale yellow, which could be due to lighting or dosing or something. When looking under actinics, it's obviously that they contain green fluorescent protein, otherwise they would be basically invisible under actinics like the normal purple polyps are. It's too hard to see in pictures. I would like to see how they look under some other type of light. On the subject of a different coral, my highlighter green monti has polyps that under actinic glow orange. I think it picked up pigment from the orange monti it has been sharing a rock with for the last several years. I love seeing the morphs that come up in tanks over time. Edited April 18, 2012 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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