melev

Back in 2011, I spotted a nice bowl-shaped Yellow Scroll coral at the frag swap. No-one was buying it, and I figured it must be expensive. To my surprise, it was $20 and yet not a single buyer. "Done," I said, handed him a $20 bill and walked away. I picked it up at the end of the event, and the seller told me he was glad I bought it because he knew it would do well in my system.

It quietly grew in that spot but when the tank leaked in early 2012, water quality took a bad turn before i could set up a stable temporary system. Much of this coral took a hit, but I kept a positive attitude since it still had quite a bit of healthy DNA to work with. Cyano took hold of it, and the fish nibbled at it. I found hermits on it often, and even some majanos tried to call that spot home.

January 2013, patches of tissue but good strong margins:

You'd think it would fill in, growing across the calcium foundation, no? Instead, it opted to grow upwards and only reconnected if two sections finally touched, melding into one patch.

February 2013, (upper left corner) already taking shape.

March 2013:

July 2013:

December 2013, finally back in the 400g:

January 2014, macro shot during the daylight period:

February 2014, late night when the polyps are extended wide open:

Looking forward to seeing what this coral looks like in another year. Some have commented that this coral is more interesting since it isn't a bowl shape.

This coral is also called Cup Coral, or Turbinaria. I found a piece on Live Aquaria if you are looking for a piece now. Just make sure to plan around weather delays when ordering online. http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/p...521&pcatid=521