Red planet rumor, is it true?

[Wiz]

So I have heard from a few different places that red planet Acro will turn entirely red under bright lighting and turn green under low lighting and a mixture somewhere in between. I never really cared honestly but my tank is having some issues that I am trying to figure out. I'm starting to blame lighting and I want to make sure that I am accurate. My red planet has been entirely red since I got it. When I purchased it it had some green in it but that green went away real fast and it is entirely red. It has been mid tank. So you would think if the rumor is true then my LEDs are cranked up too high. But I'm not entirely sure it is true because I have a very hard time believing that my LEDs are too high.

 

[29bonsaireef]

It is 100% true that red planet can show red or green coloration, and is usually light dependent. The green normally stays around the base or in areas of lower light. Doesn't mean your lights are "too" high, that's the color it should be hence the name.

 

[Wiz]

It is 100% true that red planet can show red or green coloration, and is usually light dependent. The green normally stays around the base or in areas of lower light. Doesn't mean your lights are "too" high, that's the color it should be hence the name.

What it does tell me is that my lights are not low. That's what I am looking at. I have my LED set to a Max of 60 on the blue Channel and 40 on the white. I have a Gonipora on the sand bed that seems to be burning. I have Monty's at the top of the tank that keep on retracting so far you can barely see any color it almost looks dead. And I have zoa colonies toward the top that do not seem to want to open entirely just a few heads here or there. Basically through eliminating all other possibilities I am beginning to think that my lights might just be too bright. But I have two Reef Radiance 165p plus hung 11 and a half inch above the water surface. With a Max of 40/60. That does not seem like much to me on a 75 gallon tank

 

[bif24701]

This is also true for many acropora.

 

[29bonsaireef]

Honestly, LEDs are tricky some corals can be doing fine and the one next to it could be getting fried. Not ragging on LEDs but for that reason is why I do not like to use them. They hit corals with powerful beams of light, while the overall spread and par might not be that intense. I had ran LEDs for a short time and my RP stayed mostly green, because I had to have the lighting that low for everything else to not get cooked. If you can, maybe move your RP up and lower your lighting intensity to balance out the rest of the corals. Red planet is one coral that I would say can never have too much artificial lighting.

 

[zuri]

I got my red planet for this exact reason green/red I can't imagine keeping it full red...... I use mainly blue with 1% white 3 hours aday.

 

[jda]

I mostly agree with all of this. I can have a totally red Red Planet with par over 350-400, or so. This is not a ton of light, but is not low-light either... I would say high average. In lower light, I will get green in the middle and on the bottom sides.

In super high light, mine gets whitish tips as it grows. This is 500+ PAR.

If you want a coral that will thrive with both the green and the red, then Atlantis Christmas Mirabilis is for you... it is basically a Red & Green Planet.

 

[bif24701]

My red planet is a super grower in about 4-500 PAR has a very deep purple color, very nice. Also green on the base/interior.

 

[Wiz]

Forgot to post a pic with this post. So here is my red planet

 

[hatfielj]

It's true, but it's not just red planet that will change color dramatically under different lighting and chemistry conditions. All SPS can change dramatically in different environments. It's part of what's challenging in this hobby...finding the "right" conditions to get the coral to show it's "best" colors. It's somewhat subjective and open to interpretation as well.

 

[Scorpius]

I'm more of a polyp kind of guy. If I can get great polyp extension I know my chemistry it just right.

 

[Wiz]

I'm more of a polyp kind of guy. If I can get great polyp extension I know my chemistry it just right.

I get I get virtually no polyp extension on any of my SPS. As you can see by the pic of my red planet. But it is true for Monty's akros any SPS in my taint

 

[Wiz]

I mostly agree with all of this. I can have a totally red Red Planet with par over 350-400, or so. This is not a ton of light, but is not low-light either... I would say high average. In lower light, I will get green in the middle and on the bottom sides.

In super high light, mine gets whitish tips as it grows. This is 500+ PAR.

If you want a coral that will thrive with both the green and the red, then Atlantis Christmas Mirabilis is for you... it is basically a Red & Green Planet.

So could you look at the picture that I posted of my red planet and tell me if you think the par is above 500 being that mine is red with white tips

 

[FMF0331]

my red planets ....

 

[Wiz]

my red planets ....

One with red green and white. A bunch that look almost all red and one that is red and green. Are they under different lighting?

 

[jda]

I forgot... shading and shadowing will get some green too. I use MH and have good reflectors and I have nearly no green except for maybe on the bottom. YYMV with directional type of lighting like MH with tiny reflectors or point-source LED.

If it is growing, then I would not sweat any of this... it is beautiful either way. If it all-green, then I would worry since it is probably stressed or under fed with lighting.

 

[jda]

So could you look at the picture that I posted of my red planet and tell me if you think the par is above 500 being that mine is red with white tips

There is no way to tell PAR off of a picture. PAR is just a rough guide anyway... a way of being able to roughly give advice and stuff. Quality light matters. Most red proteins do like some daylight spectrum, so it make sense with your whites up that it has plenty red.

I just saw some posts from Mr. Riddle the other day that green often transitions into red (along with many other colors) both with differing intensity or spectrum. ...so it could be anything.

If you did not buy it on a ORA plug, then there is also the slight possibility that it is not true ORA Red Planet and could be any other kind of tabling red coral. There are some vendors and hobbyists that use names for look-alikes that usually are not the exact same coral.

 

[Wiz]

There is no way to tell PAR off of a picture. PAR is just a rough guide anyway... a way of being able to roughly give advice and stuff. Quality light matters. Most red proteins do like some daylight spectrum, so it make sense with your whites up that it has plenty red.

I just saw some posts from Mr. Riddle the other day that green often transitions into red (along with many other colors) both with differing intensity or spectrum. ...so it could be anything.

If you did not buy it on a ORA plug, then there is also the slight possibility that it is not true ORA Red Planet and could be any other kind of tabling red coral. There are some vendors and hobbyists that use names for look-alikes that usually are not the exact same coral.

When I bought it at the lfs it was almost entirely green with just red polyps sticking out. Shortly after I bought it it went in tirely red and I have not seen the polyps come out in years. But it does grow obviously. Started from a 3-inch frag

 

[FMF0331]

One with red green and white. A bunch that look almost all red and one that is red and green. Are they under different lighting?

all under same lighting , placement at different level of the tank. ( AI leds)

 

[stoneroller]

Look for polyp extension well after lights are off. I bet you they come out to feed.