|
|
FAQs on Identification of Stinging-Celled Animals
7 Related Articles:
Cnidarians,
Water Flow, How Much is Enough,
Related FAQs: Cnidarian
IDs 1, Cnidarian IDs 2,
Cnidarian IDs 3,
Cnidarians ID 4, Cnidarians ID 5,
Cnidarians ID 6,
Cnidarian ID 8,
Cnidarian ID 9, Cnidarian ID 10,
Cnidarian ID 11, Cnidarian ID 12,
Cnidarian ID 13,
Cnidarian ID 14,
Cnidarian ID 15,
Cnidarian ID 16, Cnidarian ID 17,
Cnidarian ID 18,
Cnidarian ID 19, &
Anemone ID 1,
Aiptasia ID 1, Stony Coral ID 1,
Mushroom Identification,
Soft Coral ID,
Alcyoniid ID, Xeniid ID,
Cnidarians 1, Cnidarians 2,
Cnidarian Behavior, Cnidarian
Compatibility, Cnidarian Selection,
Cnidarian Systems, Cnidarian Feeding,
Cnidarian Disease, Cnidarian
Reproduction,
Acclimating Symbiotic Reef Invertebrates to Captive Lighting, | 
A Fungia species...
|
How many species of corals have been known in the world? 11/7/06
Hello Bob,
I'm working for a non-governmental organization in
Vietnam. We're producing a magazine for children that is called Green
Forest.
<Neat!>
A child sent to us a question that asking the
number of corals in the world. I hope that you can help me to answer
this question. Moreover, could you tell me how many species of corals
there are in Vietnam or South-east Asia?
<Mmm, I don't know exact
numbers, but Dr. Veron, Daphne Fautin may be able to help here (via the
Net)... Actual Stony Corals (Scleractinians) may be separately
searchable vs. all the other myriad Cnidarian groups/classes called
"corals"... To me, only the stonies and Soft Corals, Alcyonaceans, are
"true" corals...>
Thank you very much for your help and look
forward to hearing from you soon,
Cheers,
Thu Hien
Education for Nature-Vietnam
<Please do search on the Net re
numbers (total and Vietnam) for Scleractinia and Alcyonacea. Bob Fenner>
What is on this leather? 9/18/06
We are having a discussion on
our local forum. There appears to be a worm or a sweeper tentacle on
this yellow Fiji leather (Sarcophyton sp).
<Does appear so to me as
well>
Some of us were under the impression that leathers fought for
territory via chemical warfare, and didn't have sweeper tentacles
similar to LPS.
<This is my impression, recollection as well... And
a cursory look/see in my library at hand and the Net shows this as well>
Many of us believe it to be a Digitate Hydroid. Please check out the
video and tell us what you think.
VIDEO <http://www.sykesweb.com/210%20Tank/video/yellow%20fiji%20leather.wmv>
Thanks!!
-Chuck Jordan
<Could be this as well... and even
another possibility... some form/species of filter-feeding polychaete
worm. I would send this video to folks at Colleges that have
invertebrate zoology departments for their guesses/input. My first guess
would be the hydroid. Bob Fenner>
What is this? Bad news... hydroids 8/1/06
My tank
has become over-ran with this ( I think ) pest.
<Is... serious>
The local aquarium dealer has no idea what it is either (see
attached images). I have had an Aiptasia problem but I thought I had
it under control. I would like your opinion if this really is a
pest, or is it something I should not worry about.
<You
should... I would take "drastic action" here>
It seems to have
covered the live rock in my tank as well as the fake plants I have
put in. The fish in my tank are all fine except for the black cap
basslet which now has white scarring along his head (he is the only
fish that hides in tight spaces, which is why I think he may have
more contact than any of the other fish). Any help would be great.
Please email me back at:
Thanks,
Shamus
<I would
consider "nuking" this system... biocidally bleaching it... Please
read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/hyzoancompfaq.htm
and the linked
files above. Bob Fenner> |  
|
Coral ID 7/8/06
Hi crew hope you are all fine,
It's been a few months since I last spoke to you.
I have set up a
120G (UK) tank with a 65G sump to have as a reef. Tank has been cycled
and has been officially running for 4 months.
I added 100lbs of new
Fiji live rock and left the tank free of fish for 3 months to build on
the pod population and various algae to grow. Of
which I have an
abundance of scroll algae (beautiful) and a lot of Caulerpa racemosa and
a tiny amount of Halimeda. My parameters have
never been so steady,
sg 1.024, temp 78F, ammonia 0, nitrate 0, nitrite 0, calcium 390, pH
8.2 (reverse photo period with sump), alk 9.6.
Anyway to the point,
I have attached an image to the email, it was a piece of live rock which
I could see was an old coral skeleton, I looked
and guessed it may
have been a Stylophora but I am no expert yet! The rock has a lot of
tiny holes which I guessed would be where the polyps
would come out
from when it was alive. Since being in the tank now for 4 months it
appears that there is some orange growth of I guess flesh
although
firm to the touch and as you will see from the picture tiny white dots
which I know are polyps as they come out during day and
night, these
are small about an eighth of an inch across.
Could you shed some
light and tell me what it is?
<Mmm, judging from the small corallite
size, color, overall shape of this creeping colony, I'd say it's some
species of Porites>
It's located 12" from the top of the water
surface, in medium flow water
with 2 x 250W MH.
Many thanks
Dave G (UK)
<Bob Fenner> | 
|
Polypoid Hydroid... 7/7/06
Howdy Bob;
<Gerald>
I have a strange critter that has shown up in my tank;
It is a
medusae with 10 tentacle branches, I have no clue and everyone tells me
hydroid and I keep saying hydroid is way too big an answer, I want it
narrowed down.
I do have a gorgonian in the tank.
<Mmm...
is likely a hydroid of some sort, but I don't know any further/smaller
classification for this either. It may well be that this is not a
welcome visitor... that it and others that will arise from some part of
your hard substrate will mal-affect the health of other life in your
system. The tough part is how to find, remove these new strobilized
individuals over time. Bob Fenner> | 
|
Mystery Softies, Cnid. IDs 6/25/06 -
Dear WWM Crew,
<Morgan>
I am a long time reader/researcher and have enjoyed your
site for quite some time. I am a big fan of researching before I buy,
and I do not like to purchase a coral without research and careful
consideration. However, I have some hitchhiker softies that came out
into the light while curing and quarantining. They are very small
still, but are rapidly spreading, and I would like to know the species,
or at least the genus, with some certainty so I can care for them and
protect my other corals if necessary.
This tank is a nano with lots
of live rock and very happy symbiotic softies, including anthelia,
finger coral, xenia, and leathers, among others, all spreading. I also
have several small zoanthid colonies and lots of strange hitchhikers,
like bivalves, tunicates, young serpent stars, and pistol shrimp (I've
never seen them, but they keep me awake at night with subsequent pops
when something gets too close to their little hideouts). I have also
pulled off several tiny whelk/conch animals and some tiny mysterious
crabs for evaluation in isolation. Everything is great; my peppermint
shrimp pair breed and my tiny blenny keeps everything spotless and
algae-free. However, these guys are a mystery, and I would like to know
if anyone has any ideas. They are all on different rocks purchased at
different times.
The first image contains an animal that came in on
what was labeled as Marshall Island live rocks, but I am not sure. They
have eight pinnuled tentacles each, and appear to be encrusting.
<Look like clavulariids... perhaps a gorgonian>
When I first saw
them they were clearly connected underneath a mass of hard holes
(spicules?) that looked to be part of the live rock. It seemed stony,
so I thought perhaps it an encrusting gorgonian.
<Could be>
Now I believe it to be Briareum, after reading previous posts. As it
got happier, more and more polyps emerged from the holes, and it began
to spread with a pinkish tissue from around the base, spawning tiny new
polyps. It strongly resembles B. asbestinum, but I cannot find a
trustworthy image of a retracted colony to compare. It would make sense
geographically, though, if it were Marshall Island rock, right?
<Possibly>
(It would also make sense, as something made me sick
after cutting my finger on a sharp something in my tank - I blamed
palytoxin, but perhaps Briarne?)
<Yes...>
Obviously, it had
suffered severe damage before coming into my possession, and it may be a
wild-caught colony. The top images are with and without flash, and the
bottom image is of a dead colony that resembles the retracted live
colony.
The second image is of a tiny red polyp. It is VERY tiny,
smaller than 1 cm in diameter. It is a deep, velvet red with white
centers. It is almost certainly encrusting, but there is one polyp not
in the image that lives alone (perhaps coralline algae has grown over
the base?). These did not emerge until well after the zoanthid colony
it was on finished quarantine. It seems photoreceptive (it retracts at
night), so perhaps an encrusting zooxanthellic gorgonian or an
encrusting star polyp?
<I'd guess the latter>
I have no idea -
definitely an octocoral, but flatter than any gorgonian I know if. Also
red tentacles with a white oral disc - what could it be?
<Or another
Zoanthid species>
The third and final image it the most
troubling. The polyps are very beautiful and resemble snowflakes. They
were white but are getting more brown (zooxanthellic
change/regrowth?) It lays flat like the second mystery polyp, but is a
tiny bit larger. The rock it came on was the reason I purchased the
Sarcophyton above it, and the whole rock is really held together with
sponges and tunicates and coralline algae. These polyps came into light
and began to reproduce, from two to over a dozen, including some young
ones. I believe the choenchyme might show it to be more like
Protoalyconaria (Cornularia sp? with small polyps?) than a Scleraxonia,
but I cannot be sure because of the nature of the rock it inhabits. The
image is very poor, and I am sorry.
I would be really grateful if
you help me out!
Thank you,
Morgan
<Can't really make this
out of your image. Bob Fenner> |   |  |
If I stare too long, will I see the devil?
|
Re: Mystery nocturnal 'polyps' 6/13/06
Managed to
get some better pics at light up today, from generally the same
area.. One pic is with full lighting, the other actinic only... you
can see
the tentacles of another polypoid in the upper right
corner of the full light picture, but neither captured the vivid
colorations they have around the centers.
Do these pictures give
you a better idea what I'm dealing with? Pest or pleasant gift?
Thanks,
Justin
<Not much better idea... still some sort of
polypoid animal... perhaps a small actinarian... I would leave these
as they are if they are not excluding other benthic life. Bob
Fenner> |  
|
Mystery nocturnal 'polyps' 6/12/06
Hey Crew,
<Justin>
Hate to bother again, but these things have been boggling
me for weeks now, and I can't find anything comparable anywhere. There
are about 5 of them loosely gathered on a single piece of live rock, and
shut themselves during the day, about 5 minutes after the lights come on
in the morning.
The body of the 'polyp' is about the size of a dime
when opened, and have many 'tentacles' which are not visible in the
picture that about 1/2 of an inch beyond this
diameter. They appear
to be largely clear under standard lighting, but very fluorescent under
actinic/blue wavelength LED penlight (I used the LED for the pictures).
The tentacles are clear with a bluish glowing tip, and the inner body of
the 'polyp' has many shades throughout it, ranging from red to blue.
When they close up during the day, they appear as a small
brown
mound with the center mouth of the 'polyp' still visible in the center.
My camera's flash is not functioning correctly, and getting a picture of
them open is very difficult,
<I can or can't see this for sure>
at least for the time being. There are 3 'polyps' in the picture, 2 in
either upper corner, one near the middle in the lower half. My first
thought was pest anemones, but I can't find any
that look at all
like this. Help!
Thanks,
Justin
<Some sort of polypoid
animal, but I can't make out any more from your description, pic. Bob
Fenner> |
|
|
