Sps Colour Theory"s

[miareefer]

Greetings
Hi i was wondering if i could get some input from some of our resident Acropora keepers .Firstly i would like to share a current observation ive noticed as off late .IThis is involving New colonys it seems regardless of how good water quality is there always seems to be a change in colour .For instance say the colour darkens and almost always does it takes a few months and they seem to bounce back to almost the orignal .Then theres another scenario when they lighten in colour almost as if the tissue is thinning .Is this normal?.
Another point ill mention is i hear a lot about judging Acropora health on Polyp Extension i feel its a good method but mine always seem to exhibit great polyp extension .
Whats your view ?
Mia

[Samper]

Well I've only bought a few colonies the rest have been frags but I do also notice a change. The coloration I get under my 20k in a very shallow tank is very different than the color I see when I purchase the pieces. I like watching them go through their various changes...keeps me very interested in what's going on. No matter how nice your water parameters are something is going to be slightly different from your system to another and it is going to cause some stress to the coral. They are very hardy provided the proper care can adapt and bounce back very quickly to changes....think about what they go through in the ocean...hurricanes, tsunamis etc.

Polyp extension is an area that I don't know too much about as of yet. Almost every time I add a new piece I see polyps the same day. All I know is that I'm happy if I see most of the polyps during the day and am really happy when I see them extended and feeding at night.

[middlemark]

I also have grown nearly all frags, but for many do notice a color change - with that slow reversal over a month to half a year for the stubborn ones.

There's so much with water quality that varies that I'm not suprised when people with two tanks report diff. coloration in both. Along with all the chemistry + quality issues - there's the whole Alleopathy issue too. Some folks have softies or other corals that might be contributing chemicals that affect things - or other SPS. Most of us [self included] stock at a rate far above the wild -and with so many diff species crammed into a very small area [physically, and of water]. Could be overblown - like so many parts of this discussion - so hard to tell.

Yeah, some of my corals I don't expect to have daytime polyps [or much of them] like my LJ Purple Tip ... and some I expect to be polyped out all the time [green slimer, A millepora]. But if I don't see a coral exhibit polyp extension sometime over a 24 hour period - I consider that a sign that something's not right.

There's just so many possibilities with PE ... respiration, feeding, waste expelling, and the list goes on. IMO, kinda hard to figure which - yet one of the few signs we get when growing twigs.

[kevinpo]

I usually buy brown colonies that the wholesalers are trying to get rid of Almost all color up very nicely in a 2-3 months. I have more than 100 frags I've gotten from other hobbiest and for the most part they stay the same color as when I first saw them in the original owners tank. I have had a few that turn brown or shift color due to different lighting intensity or spectrum but with a few moves around the tank I can get them back to their original color in a few months.

I have gotten most of my frags from hard core SPS keepers who have about the same water parameters as myself and don't mix in soft corals. They also run lighting very similar so I don't think it's that much of a change for the coral.

Regards,
Kevin

[miareefer]

Wow Guys ime not alone here !!

Samper Mark and Kevin
Thanks for your input its highly appreciated , Observations shared like these goes a long way to building ones knowledge base in captive keeping of SPS .
As you can see i was more curious then anything i feel ime being a little Text book judgemental .My parametres are perfect (nutrient free) and ime asking the question why the change ?
It obvious that colour in regard to nutrient is a factor but it appears that Flow and placement in lighting are just as critical .

Samper raised some great points
In regard to differing levels of some of the other elements in Sea water not po4 or no3 but perhaps on a trace element scale .No to systems will be the same or perhaps a more established system could easily have a deficiency in a unmeasureble element .

middlemark
Along with all the chemistry + quality issues - there's the whole Alleopathy issue too. Some folks have softies or other corals that might be contributing chemicals that affect things - or other SPS. Most of us [self included] stock at a rate far above the wild -and with so many diff species crammed into a very small area [physically, and of water]. Could be overblown - like so many parts of this discussion - so hard to tell.

Well said Mark
As normal a very Diplomatic and conservative approach .
Your Points on alleopathy are well noted and can obviouslly effect overall health of individual colonys that in turn would have a effect on colour .I believe that people combat this with the running of Carbon 24-7 (Works ) but i believe at a cost the obvious removal of trace elements and possible overusage is a concern .I have employed Carbon non stop for the last year and could never say a bad word about it recently i decided to cut the amount of carbon in half and havent noticed any significant difference other then costs have been cut in half

Kevinpo
What can i say except you have the the Midas touch in regard to Golden SPS when one views the size of some of your colonys its apparent your da man.
My fav is your orange Montipora cap that things a monster and a tribute to yourself .Your willingness to share your observations makes you a allround top sort of a bloke. If i ever get a chance to see that tank in person ime going to roll out my swag and hang about till my travel Visa runs out and they Deport me .

Thankyou
Mia

[kevinpo]

Hi Mia,
Thank you for your kind words! You are always welcome to come visit

One more comment on lighting:
IME many SPS corals will exhibit extreme color (colour ) changes with as little as 6" movement up, down, or side to side when using halide lighting. It's good to keep in mind that when using metal halide lighting, the area just under the inner envelope of the bulb is where the light intensity is the greatest. It deceases outward from there in football shaped rings. The actual intensity drop-off is highly dependant on the reflector the bulb is mounted in, as a good parabolic reflector tends to distribute the light more evenly.
Sometimes we forget this fact about our lighting and place our new prized coral front and center where we can watch it (and everyone will see it). IMO/IME sunburn and high temperature are the highest causes of RTN in SPS corals. If you place a coral directly beneath the center of your MH bulb, even on the sand bed, it will still receive up to 10 times the light intensity than if it was placed 12” left or right of center.

Regards,
Kevin