Leather Coral ID needed

[albertthiel]

I obtained this piece of Leather coral that was attached to the base of a true Sarcophytoon, but it looks so different from a Sarco that regardless of what I have done to ID it, I have not been able to.

 

Does anyone have any idea what the ID of this is

 

 

Thanks

 

Albert

[shawn1123]

cabbage coral?

[Bongo Shrimp]

Looks shriveled up or like it has been munched on by something. Is it opening up any more than that? I would say cabbage coral too but it looks like it is on a stalk. Could it just be an unhappy sarcophyton?

[albertthiel]

cabbage coral?

I looked at that as a possibility but it has a stalk as a base that resembles the Sarcophyton.

 

I added it yesterday and it has not been munched on and was shriveled when I got it.

 

It was growing on the base of a large Sarco at the LFS where I got it, so I would assume it is some type of Sarco but cannot find out which one exactly

 

Albert

 

Looks shriveled up or like it has been munched on by something. Is it opening up any more than that? I would say cabbage coral too but it looks like it is on a stalk. Could it just be an unhappy sarcophyton?

 

Yes that is correct and that is how it came.

 

I just posted more info to the previous message but it come off the base of a large Sarco, as an outgrowth on that base.

 

What is odd is that it is purple and seems to have some white tips but they are not very pronounced ... it has been in my tank since yesterday and has not changed in appearance at all.

 

All water quality params in my 20 G are fine.

 

Light is 2 100 watt 5000K bulbs but it is not getting direct light from them as at the LFS it was not in full light either due to where it was attached to (the base of a Sarco, the cap of which was shielding it from full blasted light so I duplicated those conditions in the tank but will move it into some more light by moving the piece of live rock, which will give it more light starting tomorrow,

 

Odd .. purple and ridges and small whitish tips ...

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

I just took a look at it now that the light have been out for about 90 minutes and used a red light to look at it, and it still looks exactly the same,

 

No change at all.

 

Looks like it is frozen in time.

 

It is however not decaying or scarred or damaged in any way that I can see. Odd

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

Leather Coral ID requested - if that is what it actually is, a Leather Coral, as no positive ID has been established yet -

 

Pictures taken this morning right after the first light came on:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Does not look much different from yesterday Still looking pretty much the same. Does not seem to have either opened more, or closed more, or changed any in its appearance. Odd indeed!

 

Those ridges, and what looks like white points are still there and none seem to have widened or become smaller or moved to another location on the head.

 

I am showing the stem of it in a little more detail, as some suggested it may be a "Cabbage" coral, but what you see as the stem is not what "Cabbage" corals normally would look like, so my guess is that it is not a "Cabbage Coral" - Sinularia brassica, or any other species of the Sinularia genus.

 

I think that I will go back o the LFS who sold it to me later today, and see if I can find out more that way by looking at, talking to the owner who has been in the business for over 30 years, and run Pure Reef (http://www.purereef.net), and taking some pictures of the Leather coral (a Sarco) it came off, or better was taken off.

 

From what I remember that was a Sarcophython trocheliophorum, so the most common variety of the Leathers sold, and kept by hobbyists.

 

I am going to make sure that what was attached to its base was indeed the same as the mother and large Sarcophyton, or whether for some reason the outgrowth as, if I remember correctly, there were 3 such outgrowths, of which I got the one above is actually a Sarcophyton trocheliophorum for sure. From what I remember it was, but I want to make sure since we are not able to find an ID for what I now actually have in my aquarium (and that IMO behaves in a most odd manner).

 

The strangest thing, IMHO, about this coral is that it does not seem to have changed in appearance at all since yesterday, or nearly 24 hours after acclimating it for over 45 minutes and then wedging it in an interstice in a piece of Totoka live rock, where it still is today..

 

I will keep the readers of this ID thread posted on what I find out.

 

The store does not open till 11:00 am so I will not be posting an update till around noon or later. Please check in again then and see if you can recognize what additional pictures I will be posting at that time.

 

Thank you

 

Albert

[GokesReef]

Almost looks kind-of like a chalice.

[albertthiel]

Almost looks kind-of like a chalice.

 

Yes it does sort of ... but not sure it is one. Look at the stem it has and that is not IMO typical of a Chalice coral based on what I know, but thanks for the suggestion.

 

Mystery remains ... :+)

[albertthiel]

Leather coral ID - the kind of mystery one ...

 

Well after going to the LFS and looking at the larger Leather that the one I have was pulled of, as it was an outgrowth on the main larger one (and one of several), it would appear that what the ID is would be:

 

Cabbage Leather (probably Sinularia dura - purple variety).

 

Although we cannot be 100% sure at this point as the one stem has to grow out to get a better idea what it looks like and be able to put a definite ID on it, for now the best we can come up with is a Purple Cabbage, Sinularia dura leather.

 

Here is another picture of it :

 

 

and

 

 

I will have to reposition it somewhat so it gets a little more light and a little more flow, and then it should start to open up a little more and start spreading as time goes by.

 

Thanks to all who helped out in ID'ing this.

 

Albert