What's this??

[awalters99]

Can anyone Identify this thing??? Thanks!!

[zhenya]

Hi awalters99,



Pics are a bit blurry but I think I can safely say that this polyps belong to the Palythoa family, commonly sold under a name of "brown button polyps".

Be careful if handling this polyps and use gloves as they are known to produce powerful toxin called(you ready for this? ) palytoxin. If ingested or allowed t get into a bloodstream it can be quite quite powerful poison.
Do a search of this forum using keyword palytoxin, zoanthiids, or palythoa for more information about this polyps.
Here's some info on the palytoxin Palytoxin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[CSeaSee]

First off, WELCOME TO REEFLAND!!!!!!!!!
Your pictures are a little out of focus, but I'll give it a shot.
Those look to be button polyps, or zoanthid polyps. They are soft corals and require moderate amounts of light and flow and good water quality. They are quite hardy and grow into large colonies under proper conditions. They come in many color patterns. Check these pics out:




They can get that dense!

[awalters99]

Yes, my camera isnt so good. This thing has begun to multiply having new "disks" form at the base..it also does close up when i put food in the tank, as if it wants to eat whats floating by.

Thanks for the welcome.
(and your guesses!)

[CSeaSee]

They usually reproduce asexually in captivity, by either budding at the base or splitting down the middle. And yes, they will eat very small pieces of food if your fish don't eat it first. The budding indicates that your water parameters are good for it to grow and reproduce!

[awalters99]

Thanks for the tips you guys. I appreciate it. Do you know anything about Seabae Anemones splitting by chance? My has split so now I have 2. I take it this is a good thing?

[zhenya]

Thanks for the tips you guys. I appreciate it. Do you know anything about Seabae Anemones splitting by chance? My has split so now I have 2. I take it this is a good thing?

I'm not sure if it is a common occurance for Heteractis crispa to reproduce asexually, at least to my knowlledge it is not documented in the hobby all that much. In fact,I think the only asexual reproduction that been documented and photographed in the hobby is of the Entacmaea quadricolor, aka bubble tip anemone. This brings me to the question if you are sure of the identification of your anemone. Do you have any pictures of it?

[awalters99]

Ok I know these are fuzzy, but it was the best I could do.. Thanks for your imput!!! sebae or bubble tip??

[zhenya]

You are right, pictures are a bit fuzzy but if I had to guess I would guess that it is bubble tip anemone, albeit deflated somewhat in the first image.
The easiest way to tell the difference between those to species is the presence of distinct verrucae(bumps) on the column of anemone.

Here's an image of my H.crispa when I kept it, note the bumps on the column.


Bubble tip anemone is the only host anemone that lacks this verrucae(bumps) on it's column.

I take it this is a good thing?

I forgot to address this question in my previous post. It actually depends...
If you have dedicated species tank then there is no problem at all. If not, you have to be prepared to remove some of them or in no time at all your tank may look like mine...


That in itself isn't the problem if you don't keep sensitive corals that will be stung to death by advancing hords of anemones...

[awalters99]

Wow you have a tank full of anemones!!! :-) The anemone(s) I have Do not have any bumps. SO that means they are bubble tips. I thought bubble tipped anemones had a distinguishing Bubble on their tips..?? Thanks for clarifying those questions.. Ive been told wrong by where I purchased them! (can you tell I'm still quite the beginner) Ha!

[Ninong]

Here's a FREE online book about host sea anemones and clownfish.

[Fishyz]

Hi awalters99,




Pics are a bit blurry but I think I can safely say that this polyps belong to the Palythoa family, commonly sold under a name of "brown button polyps".

Be careful if handling this polyps and use gloves as they are known to produce powerful toxin called(you ready for this? ) palytoxin. If ingested or allowed t get into a bloodstream it can be quite quite powerful poison.
Do a search of this forum using keyword palytoxin, zoanthiids, or palythoa for more information about this polyps.
Here's some info on the palytoxin Palytoxin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hi, I'm wondering if all polyps have the toxin or is it just that specific type? Thanks.

[zhenya]

Hi, I'm wondering if all polyps have the toxin or is it just that specific type? Thanks.

According to Eric Borneman, in his book Aquarium Coarals...

"All species of Palythoa, and most zoanthiids including the Protopalythoa species, produce a chemical called palytoxin in their mucus and gonads.This is a potent toxin and can be deadly to humans."

Basically it boils down to this- don;t handle any of the zoanthids or Palythoa polyps with bare hands. If you do, don't stik your hands into your mouth or wipe your lips, or eyes before you wash your hands with soap.., couple of times for good measure. ;)