Blasto Wellsi Question...

[dirtdart]

My blasto wellsi has 6 new polyps (babies - on a new branching). I want to seperate these new polyps along with a couple of smallish, older ones from the main colony:

 

Do the new polyps have to be at a certain maturity/stage, before they should be seperated?

 

Is there a pro/con relationship I need to be aware of? Right now each of the new polyps are about 0.5cm in diameter, and starting to show signs of color.

 

Basically, I'm looking for a "Rule of Thumb" with regards to when I'll know a new coral growth can be fragged.

 

Any, and all assistance would be greatly appreciated.

 

Art

[DementedLullaby]

You can frag them away anytime but it can be a bit hard because of how the skeleton grows and they branch off. Just chisel the rock underneath the skeleton off and be very careful around the flesh IMO. I have yet to attempt "fragging" any but this is the way I'd go around it wih my collection.

[dirtdart]

DementedLullaby,

 

Thanks for the quick response. Until yesterday, I thought that all blasto's "rock" were their skeleton. All the blasto's I've seen locally were just skeletal growth underneath them.

 

The question/problem I have, is the blasto I'm interested in fragging doesn't have LR underneath... it's just skeleton. I'm sure this is a stupid question, but how (or, do) the blasto's connect to each other?

 

(OK, a little deciphering here) - does the skeletal growth act as bone tissue, with the fleshy part of the polyp running through the skeletal growth (like our bone maro)? or, does the skeletal growth act meerly as a platform for the polyps to attach to, with the fleshy portions of the polyp only on the surface of the skeletal structure? (When you chisel through the skeleton, is there a vein of 'polyp' that you will cut through inside of the skeleton? Kind of like an Oreo cookie - skeletal surface surrounding a vein of 'polyp'? Not sure if this is relevant to my fragging a blastomussa wellsi, just something that I've been curious about as I get more and more mentally prepared for this task. (Can you tell I'm just a little nervous?)

 

Anyway, as the blasto doesn't have LR under it's skeletal structure... can I just chisel the piece I want off of the main body? Any thoughts as to how hard/dense the skeletal structure is? Is this something that is relatively thick, and will take a lot of pressure to breakthrough? or, do I really need to be causious, as the surface is really brittle?

 

Again, thank you for any and all assistance,

 

Art

[irishtexan]

^^If it works out and you have some extras, I'll buy some!

 

 

 

texx

[dirtdart]

^^If it works out and you have some extras, I'll buy some!

texx

 

Texx-

 

no problem; by-the-buy, the blasto's are deep red in colour, with a green mouth. i'll keep you posted on their progress - but, I would not expect them anytime soon. They won't be ready to go anywhere for a couple of months, as I want to let them mature and recover from the fragging.

 

I was told that blasto's grow pretty slow, but this one seems to grow like a weed. I've only had her for maybe two months, and she's already sprouted 7 polyps (noticed a new one today).

 

Ya' got to love these guys!

 

Art

[accord86]

Same question....

[irishtexan]

Ok cool! I will take the small ones that you frag off if this is easier. LMK!

 

Also, do you have a pic of them.

 

 

Thanks!!!

texx

[firefishbrain]

you confused me by saying that the welsi were on new branches, could they be mreletti, in that case just break off the branch and you're good to go, if they are infact wellsi, then what you want to do it is take an exacto knife or something where you can cut very precisely and cut INBETWEEN the polyps, it imperative that you don't cut the polyp scept at the very base... the njust take a chisel and chop the rock, for even mor precieson, cut the rock on the bottom with a dremel and then do the chisel, as I said, you can't cut any of the polyps, otherwise you comprimise the entire colony, and the blasto's will take forever and a day for them to get a to a "normal" size...

[dirtdart]

I'll have to send a photo, but if you take the green out of the center of the one's in your avater you'd have the one that I'm talking about. The new "branch" growth is an off shoot from the skeletal growth they appear to be resting on. Like I said, I'll include a photo later this weekend... when my wife is off my case! She's looking over my shoulder as I type, complaining about food, and homework.

 

Art

[irishtexan]

lol. Just post a pic!

 

 

Thanks!

texx

[dirtdart]

Ok, as promised, here is a photo of the blasto in question. I hope this helps. I have circled the new, little additions to the family in yellow. Please let me know if this makes the babies harder to see. It can be easily removed.

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Art

 

PS - Firefishbrain,

 

Can you clarify from this photo, on the wellsi/merletti ID? and do you know (how/or if) either of the species connects to one another? (Through inside the skeletal structure via vein, or are they only connected by the rock-like skeletal structure itself?)

 

Again, thank you in advance.

 

Art

 

[firefishbrain]

let it grow some more, that'll be easy to frag considering it's kinda two small colonies of the same morph. cut cut it down the that gap, you coud do it now if you wantedm or are you talking about an acual fragging with creating even smaller colonies out of the ones you have.

and those are wellsi. merletti's look like baby blasto's on a stick, if you wanna try growing blasto's they're easier and and faster at growing. I'll post a pic of my merlettis once I find my darned usb connector so you can see, thanks for the pic, I was a bit confused.

you can frag it now and let them grow onto a bigger rock, start to aquaculture blasto's (keep in mind it will take several hundred years and lots of mysis, lol), I was just worried about it cuz wellsi have the fused base, makeing it hard to frag without losing polyps. and when some blasto's are $75, you don't want to lose a single polyp. sorry if I confused anyone...

[dirtdart]

Gang,

 

All right, that was easier than I thought it would. I just dremeled the lower section containing the new growth, and a couple of others that were near by on the same cut. I figured I'd do it this way, and let them recoup for about a week before I try and seperate the babies from the more mature ones that are on the same current frag.

 

Right now I have the two sections in different tanks. (Cheaper than having to purchase another blasto!) I'll take some photos later tonight to show off my butchery skills. Can't wait to see these guys grow into their own colony.

 

Thanks for all of the help.

 

Art

[mvite]

Are they ready for Texx yet?

[dirtdart]

Here are the photos I promised. The first is from before I fragged the little tyke;

 

 

Then after the fragging, the original blasto back home (safe & sound);

 

 

and finally, the baby blastos in their new home;

 

 

I still have to frag the baby blasto piece one more time. I want to seperate them from the mature ones that are currently sharing the same rock.

 

To answer your question "mvite", no. As mentioned above, I want to make sure that they have had a chance to mature before sending them on their way.

 

Art

[firefishbrain]

that looked like a pretty clean cut. sweet, can't wait to see them all grown up...