Mystery Coral

[kaybee]

Any idea what this is?

I purchased this from a $5 frag tank. Initially I thought it was some sort of mushroom. I was surprised, however, to find out that it wasn't a soft coral but a LPS of some type. I figured it to be a tiny scolymia (I've never seen them this small, normally they sold with a diameter equivalent of a muffin, this had the diameter slightly less than a nickel:

http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/Saltwater/nov07-1.jpg

Months later it's skeletal structure began to develop, I figured it was building its skeletal 'donut' structure:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/Saltwater/feb08.jpg

Here it is extending its feeder tentacles at night (which are 3" long at times):
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/Saltwater/scolyfeed.jpg

It now has a diameter of 2.5" but doesn't appear to be a scolymia at all (it hasn't 'filled out'). I'm not sure what it is:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a259/y2kenny19/Saltwater/oct08.jpg


Any ideas what type of solitary LPS this is? Scolymia or something else?

[cocoa_pleco]

this one is for the dave66 files, i was going to say mushroom but when i saw the seconds pic i was like wtf

[kaybee]

Yeah, it's definately a stony coral. I also thought it was a mushroom until I touched it.

[squirt_12]

I have no idea what that is but from the second pic to the third pic it doesn't look like it is capable of having those big long feeder tantacles on it.Very cool coral!

[unleashed]

from looking at the pics, it is definitely an LPS coral of some sort.

Possibly one of the following IMO:

Cynarina sp. morph
Blastomussa sp. morph
Trachyphillia sp. morph

[kaybee]

It's definately not the latter two.

Cynarina, like scolymia, is also known as a donut coral (among other common names). I'm thinking it's one of these (though it lacks the inflated polyp lobes that cynarina tend to have).

It might be a misshapen specimen of some sort, or perhaps a normal one still in the early stages (like I've stated, I've never seen a nickel sized donut coral before so have no idea if this is a normal transformation or not on the road to typical 'collection size'.

It could also be entirely something else.

[kaybee]

Update:

It's been identified as a Pectinia ('lettuce coral').

[unleashed]

Are you sure it's Pictinia sp.?

It looks more like an LPS coral and from my reading Pictinia sp. is an SPS coral

[kaybee]

If a pectinia is designated as an SPS then that's what this coral is if the identification info I received is accurate. This mystery coral has a strong resemblance to pectinia.

Incidently, SPS/LPS terms do not always accurately reflect polyp size (for example the 'SPS' hydnophora has larger polyps than the 'LPS' leptastrea).

According to one book I have small pectinia's are described as being difficult to identify but eventually conform to the 'standard' as they get larger. Pectinia is also described as exhibiting long near-transparent tentacles which this coral has demonstrated.

Any alternate ideas as to what it is?

[unleashed]

Incidently, SPS/LPS terms do not always accurately reflect polyp size (for example the 'SPS' hydnophora has larger polyps than the 'LPS' leptastrea).

According to one book I have small pectinia's are described as being difficult to identify but eventually conform to the 'standard' as they get larger. Pectinia is also described as exhibiting long near-transparent tentacles which this coral has demonstrated.

I see what you are saying here. To me though, your coral appears too 'fleshy' for an SPS coral (your 1st and second pic). Also, your coral appears to have one large polyp compared to many small/smallish ones, again, these are evident in the 1st and 2nd pic.

Very strange indeed.......