Zoa size. Pinhead size normal?

lapin · Jan 12, 2020

Out of the blue I see some zoas growing in my tank. Pink middle with green round the outside. I know nothing about them. These are growing no where near any other coral. They found a place on the edge of a chip of dead monti. Whats weird to me is not having any in my tank or adding anything that they might have been on in the past few months.
The other question I have is how small can they be? One group is the size of a dime. There are close to 25 of them in that small an area. The other group thats an inch long is just as small. No bigger than pin heads. The colonies grew in about 2 weeks from nothing to the current size.

Ron Reefman · Jan 13, 2020

I do have some zoas that are about that size, so that part isn't impossible.

Where they come from, that's an other question.

Any chance you can get a decent close up photo?

littlebigreef · Jan 13, 2020

Perhaps they're hydroids?

reef lover · Jan 13, 2020

I agree they might be hydroids if they resemble nothing youve added.

lapin · Jan 13, 2020

I dont think they are hydroids

This is the best shot I could do today. My rock nem tank cracked and was leaking. I spent all day dealing with that

lapin · Jan 13, 2020

They look like this but pinhead size

reef lover · Jan 14, 2020

Pics blurry but growth form resembles zoas and not hydroids.
I have seen several species of "micro"zoas for sale before.

Ron Reefman · Jan 14, 2020

They look like tiny zoas all right. Any chance it could be some kind of tunicate?

littlebigreef · Jan 14, 2020

Porites will sometimes survive the trip on live rock... just another possibility. Is this new rock?

jurgenph · Jan 14, 2020

i have a zoa frag that has the tiniest polyps ever, and they don't seem to grow bigger. mine are red though.

would love to see a better quality picture, that one above could be anything LOL

J.

lapin · Jan 14, 2020

I think I got it figured out. I feel pretty dumb. It is actually a dead monti, leptastrea or stylo rising from the grave. I think it was a frag I got almost 2 years ago. It got fried when I increased my lighting and had a bout of high alk. Been dead and covered with stuff for a long time, maybe a year. What is weird, is it has tightly grouped polyps like zoas with no space between. Like these below. I dont remember buying it.

I took a baster and blew it. The polyps closed up to reveal the encrusting part underneath.

jurgenph · Jan 14, 2020

lapin said:
I think I got it figured out. I feel pretty dumb. It is actually a dead monti, leptastrea or stylo rising from the grave.

I took a baster and blew it. The polyps closed up to reveal the encrusting part underneath.

throwing another option your way... Cyphastrea.

still, would like to see a better picture

J.