Stimulating reproduction by anthocauli in cycloseris/fungia

[piercho]

I've gotten 2 anthocauli, incidentally, from a Cycloseris purchased in bad shape with major recession in one section. The anthocauli came from the border of the healthy flesh and the skeleton. I've also split the same Cycloseris, accidentally, while trying to cut out the damaged section because of algae encrouchment. So now from one little half-dead orange Cycloseris I purchased a year ago for $12, I have 4 healthy ones.

I prefer the anthocauli to splitting the body to reproduce these. The anthocauli grow fast and are round, while the split parent grows slowly and is mishapen. But, since the bare damaged skeleton was trimmed out (mistake!), I now have no damaged border that more anthocauli can arise from.

Is there a technique to stimulate budding from disk coral? I realize a could damage a large area of the disk until it recedes, but maybe there is a more elegant and less-damaging technique to use? TIA.

 

[The Claw]

I don't know if you saw this on another thread, but here is mine from August of last year. I keep trying to get an updated photo. (have to borrow a camera)

 

[piercho]

Wow. I only got one at a time, just at the damaged border. You could go into business producing that many. Did you stimulate the parent to die off, or what? There must be some residual tissue that gives rise to the buds?

 

[Anthony Calfo]

Fungiiads are some of the most remarkable corals... very unique. They are motile (extremely so in the case of some Cycloseris which can not only move laterally... but also climb over rock/rubble and flip themselves over when storm tossed, etc).

They also exhibit one of the widest ranges of reproductive strategies in the wild and in aquaria. Sexual reproduction, asexual planulation, and several budding strategies indeed as many of us are seeing like here.

Never give up on a Fungiiad. Even when the polyp seems to be completely denuded of tissue and the corallite/corallum snow white/exposed - still dont give up! Many aquarists have reported that the "skeleton" left inthe tank... months later begins to decalcify and produce "buds" (anthocauli).

They also bud when damaged as seen/mentioned above. And aquarists have easily induced this to happen by scoring the animal along the septa - making a scratch as if with a nail to score the tissue in a radiating stripe from the mouth out to the outside edge (the septa are those little ridges of the corallite, ya know )

For those even less patient like me... you can cut Fungia on a band saw or with a dremmel (diamond or steel cut-off wheel and goggles). The safe route is to cut pie-shaped wedges. These grow out to full circle in less than a year easily.

For Cycloseris specifically - you cant kill it! I have seen aquarists fracture this animal in irregualr pieces (including rips perpendicular to the septa!) and most all of these pieces still heal and grow out.

Really an amazing family of corals

Definitely beginner worthy for home propagators too.

kindly,

Anthony

 

[Illusion]

So Anthony If I am reading you right and Wanted to Propagate my Short Tenticle Plate coral I could pretty much take a Dremel Tool and cut it up like a pie without doing damage... I have one that doesnt like the light in the main tank and went from purplish to a yellowish green and was moved over to the prop tank for it to color up... It would be nice to try and get some Captive Raised ones floating around in the market around here..

TIA,
James

 

[Anthony Calfo]

cheers, James...

to be clear, we must use scientific names here - its important. Because some folks call Fungia a short tentacled plate (which can be easily cut with a dremmel) while other folks call Heliofungia by the same common name depending on how far its tentacles are out (likely to die if cut with a dremmel). Both are Fungiids.

They are one of the hungriest corals to keep too... requiring very heavy (near daily) feedings to survive long term in captivity.Most slowly starve to death (months to years) because most aquarists do not target feed them weekly or moreoften

If yours is a Fungia species... do frag away. They are quite hardy. Play it safe at first and simply cut it in half and watch the healing/results

Anthony

 

[Illusion]

Thanks Anthony.. Mine is the Fungia... I am going to try and Sell it whole and If not take the Dremel to It later on this Week as an Experiment...

Thanks again,
James

 

[The Claw]

Some of you may have seen this in the other thread, but this is a follow up to the above picture. This is one year later. You can see that one of the colonies has settled off. I suppose I could break them off the main stem, but I want nature to take its course.

 

[MCSInc]

Awsome - Looks like they have grown at quite a variable speed. Would this mean that they grow according to how much light they receive.

 

[The Claw]

I think so.