Dark red / maroon circular hitchhiker

[wackyreefer]

Hi guys

I seem to have these odd little Dark red / maroon circular things pitch up all over my rock work. They almost somehow resemble mushrooms but they very small.
I have not introduced any mushroom coral to the tank at all so I have to assume this is some sort of hitch hiker.
When only royal blues are on they glow bright red. In the photos you can see them next to coraline algae so I strongly doubt its coraline algae in a different 'phase / state' of growth.

Tank is only about 6 months old and was started with dry rock.

They are very small - 0.5 to 1cm in size. Here is a photo next to a small SPS frag for comparison:

Please help.

Thanks!

Ps. Once identified and this is in the wrong section, happy to have it moved to the correct section. I am unsure if this is a critter or a algae as those are the only 2 ID sections available.

 

[wackyreefer]

Actually I think I might have solved my own mystery and it "seems" to be what I thought it was not.
I read this: https://www.melevsreef.com/critter/red-coralline-algae
Which led me to taking a turkey baster at it and seeing how it behaves. Safe to say it doesn't expand and contract, and it's hard. I am able to break it up by hitting it with the turkey baster. It chips off and is white'ish underneath.

All signs point at dark red coralline algae for now.

 

[ImaFlippinDolphin]

Coralline for sure

 

[Tired]

Yep, some nice dark coraline. Nice- that means your tank is maturing. It's a good shade, too, slightly unusual compared to the usual light purple. I like tanks that have multiple shades of coraline algae, I think it looks better than all light purple.

For future reference, turkey basting/lightly poking an unknown thing is a good idea, to determine its texture and if it can move. Just don't poke it with your finger, in case it bites.

 

[wackyreefer]

Yep, some nice dark coraline. Nice- that means your tank is maturing. It's a good shade, too, slightly unusual compared to the usual light purple. I like tanks that have multiple shades of coraline algae, I think it looks better than all light purple.

For future reference, turkey basting/lightly poking an unknown thing is a good idea, to determine its texture and if it can move. Just don't poke it with your finger, in case it bites.

Thanks Tired! Good to know. You never stop learning in this hobby. ;Bookworm