What is your guess on these guys?

[Graphicsplus]

Hello

I had a torch coral that was completely wiped out but I went ahead and left it in the tank hoping it would miraculously recover. Well and behold, 2 months later I start seeing it growing again. I decided to take a closer look with my cell phone macro lens and find these critters crawling about.
I dont know what to make of them. The torch seems to be making a comeback so are these guys helping it along?? You can see one of them pretty much dead center.

Again this torch was completely baron of any tentacles and now its sprouting in several places.

Image is best I can do until I get

the DSLR out later today.

 

[Tahoe61]

Amphipods, some sponge growth and Spirorbid worms, and some Vermetids.

Very cool the coral is making a come back.

 

[Graphicsplus]

Should I leave it alone?

 

[Tahoe61]

Should I leave it alone?

I would since the coral is making a come back.

Amphipods usually just clean up detritus and dead tissue.

 

[LadAShark]

I would since the coral is making a come back.

Amphipods usually just clean up detritus and dead tissue.

Which could be helpful, since that would open up places for it to grow back, and also prevent the tissue from rotting on top of the coral, right?

 

[Tahoe61]

The coral was described a barren of polyps, the image shows development of new polyps heads, conditions must be favorable.
Not all Amphipods are created equal in my experience, some hobbyist swear they only eat already decaying tissue and not viable tissue.

 

[Graphicsplus]

I appreciate the info. I would venture to say they are helpful in my case as I mentioned this torch was done. I think I know what killed it (peppermint shrimp). I had about 6 or 7 in my tank when I first started adding lps and they always seem to perish. I now have 0 in my tank and I think mt CBS pair committed the crimes lol. I had tried putting another torch in a couple of months ago while I still had 1 peppermint left and that torch also began to die. Now that ALL peppermints are gone, this one in the image started growing again as well as the latest one that started dying seems to be doing a lot better.

I'm just guessing but I do think the peppermints where to blame. I tried spot feeding the shrimp every day so they wouldn't be hungry enough to bother the coral but that didn't work. I'm not happy the shrimp are dead but not sad either. As far as the little critters I'm also deducing that with the shrimp gone and not eating them anymore they are doing there job.

Thanks