How do torch corals grow ?

[Hermie]

Me too but this has me baffled , makes me wonder how many corals have this ability and should we leave things that we consider dead in the tank be in hope that a miracle happens.

The little buds could have fallen off the tissue above and then attached to the calcified skeleton. That's just another theory but it seems more plausible than coral tissue growing through skeleton.

 

[Purpletang92]

The little buds could have fallen off the tissue above and then attached to the calcified skeleton. That's just another theory but it seems more plausible than coral tissue growing through skeleton.

I thought that also but wouldn’t the flow just sweep them away once they detached from the main head? Also there are way to many polyps that’s just one side in the photo, the other side is covered also

 

[Tamberav]

Sure here you go , kinda hard to see because of the purple tentacles but that is one head half purple half green, some of the tentacles towards the center have purple stripes. Got it from corals.com according to them this was the only one they could get and they don’t know when or if their supplier will release more.

Really cool looking torch

I had a hammer grow back from a bare skeleton but honestly I just assume that there was bits of living tissue or cells too small to be easily seen that it grew back from. I mean corals are made up of many small colonial animals.

 

[Purpletang92]

Really cool looking torch

I had a hammer grow back from a bare skeleton but honestly I just assume that there was bits of living tissue or cells too small to be easily seen that it grew back from. I mean corals are made up of many small colonial animals.

Thanks and I know they are made up of many tiny animals I just never thought that the calcium base was alive and could support life.

 

[Tamberav]

Thanks and I know they are made up of many tiny animals I just never thought that the calcium base was alive and could support life.

I don't believe it is alive. I would guess that it grew there from some other mechanism... Tiny cells?

 

[Purpletang92]

I don't believe it is alive. I would guess that it grew there from some other mechanism... Tiny cells?

I’m not sure , I never thought it was alive either. Even it were cells in the body they would be considered alive right ? I don’t think the coral would drop so many polyps at once

 

[Tamberav]

I’m not sure , I never thought it was alive either. Even it were cells in the body they would be considered alive right ? I don’t think the coral would drop so many polyps at once

It didn't drop them... They can bud right from the skeleton. How the flesh got there to bud...I am not sure. The skeleton of a torch has a lot of hallow areas.... Perhaps tissue migrates there? It's an interesting thought.

 

[SoggyNW]

This is super interesting. Torches are one of my favorites and I just got my first one. I assumed they only split but the budding is crazy. Super interested to see where this goes.

 

[Purpletang92]

It didn't drop them... They can bud right from the skeleton. How the flesh got there to bud...I am not sure. The skeleton of a torch has a lot of hallow areas.... Perhaps tissue migrates there? It's an interesting thought.

When I first got the torch there was nothing there , after a few weeks polyps started showing up. I thought it was a pest until I put it under blue light and seen how many there were.

 

[Ed Hutchings]

Not a torch but LPS nonetheless. These 3 polyps grew out of a couple dead skeletons. I had bought a used system and all its contents. It was in poor condition. As I rehabbed it several things literally came back to life.

I have seen SPS do the same. I'm sure it's just a case where there's just enough living tissue to recover when conditions improve. Might not be able to see it with the naked eye but it's there. I keep dead skeletons for months or even years sometimes hoping and praying lol

 

[motortrendz]

Sure here you go , kinda hard to see because of the purple tentacles but that is one head half purple half green, some of the tentacles towards the center have purple stripes. Got it from corals.com according to them this was the only one they could get and they don’t know when or if their supplier will release more.

Wow that's awesome.

 

[NanoDJS]

awesome post , and congrats on the babies ! In my experience , this is how most branching style euphyllia does it , I have always seen the new growth from the bone area under the mouth (not where flesh is ), basically exactly like yours, I clip them off and frag them , and they always grow out well. just be careful when you clip it you dont touch the oral cavity edges .This almost always happens when a colony hits critical mass then dies off , they will throw buds for months after the coral looks "dead" alot of times I get like 5x more heads outa the die off than in the colony

 

[Tamberav]

When I first got the torch there was nothing there , after a few weeks polyps started showing up. I thought it was a pest until I put it under blue light and seen how many there were.

I saying it probably started from tissue too small to be seen by our eyes.

 

[Purpletang92]

I saying it probably started from tissue too small to be seen by our eyes.

That’s a possibility also , what I’m most shocked about is how many popped up !

 

[Purpletang92]

Managed to get a better photo , this frag is covered in little polyps the opposite side has 3x as much polyps. They all seem to be doing well

 

[Hermie]

you know what's funny... I just noticed on my single hammer coral that the "vermetid snails" I thought were on it are actually new polyps lol

the coral tissue had grown over the snails, I assumed, but now I am seeing polyp tentacles florescing just like yours

 

[Purpletang92]

you know what's funny... I just noticed on my single hammer coral that the "vermetid snails" I thought were on it are actually new polyps lol

the coral tissue had grown over the snails, I assumed, but now I am seeing polyp tentacles florescing just like yours

That’s awesome to hear , any pics ?

 

[Hermie]

That’s awesome to hear , any pics ?

;Hilarious
you can see two vermetid snails below the coral tissue, but the thing sticking out of the tissue is a new head branching out,

 

[Purpletang92]

So not only do they bud, but they release eggs too!! Check this out guys I was looking at my tank and I noticed a few heads of my torch looked smaller than normal and looked like they were shrinking but to my surprise many of these tiny white dots stared to come out of the mouths of my torch. Did some research and they are eggs!!

 

[Saltyanimals]

I think I’m experiencing something similar with my indo torch. I see what looks like a good chuck about to come off and even considering helping it along since it looks like it’ll just drop off one day and disappear into a different part of the tank never to be seen again.
Did you bailed out piece (not the parent ) recover ?