Montipora Invasion!

by | Oct 4, 2013 | Corals | 0 comments

Uncommon Montipora verrucosa

Uncommon Montipora verrucosa


For someone that loves acropora as much as I do, I sit here tonight staring at my beautiful 250 gallon mother colony system wondering how it ended up seventy five percent full of montipora colonies. When did this sneaky addiction to montipora over take my desire to keep acropora? I know that I originally started keeping montipora colonies for more practical reasons years ago, because they generally grow faster than acropora and tend to be easier to keep. As a coral farmer these are the kinds of corals I look for so they earn more real estate in my aquariums. Montipora digitata and montipora capricornis are always popular with beginning reef aquarists so they are good corals to grow and frag. Somewhere along the line I was no longer seeking out montipora that simply grew fast, but also montipora that have rare color combinations and unusual growth patterns. Many people keep tanks full of acropora because of the huge variety available, but montipora also make up a very large and diverse family. From branching to scrolling to encrusting to bumpy to smooth… a veritable Dr. Seuss story of surprising shapes and exotic colors. Acropora can’t quite compete with all the adjectives that can be spent on montipora, I guess that’s why I have thirty three different types and counting.

 

Montipora capricornis colonies

Montipora capricornis colonies

Forest fire samarensis and m spongodes.

Montipora confusa and Montipora samarensis growing together.

Rare Orange grove undata

Rare Orange Grove Montipora hodgsoni

Sunset montipora with very large polyps

Sunset montipora with very large polyps

Red montipora hodgsoni

Red montipora hodgsoni

Alien Spawn montipora sp

Alien Spawn Montipora sp

Australian mystic sunset montipora

Australian Mystic Sunset Montipora sp

Australian reverse sunset montipora

Australian Reverse Sunset Montipora tuberculosa

 

  • Morgan Moore

    I'm a native Floridian who has been living in crazy, hot Miami for over 15 years. I live in Coral Gables, my name means protector of the sea or coral depending on the language, so it is just my destiny that I grow coral for a living. I love this planet and I'm always try to be outdoors when I'm not fragging or writing. You can check out my coral babies at: Reefgardener.net

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