Hitchhiker coral?

[MoshJosh]

Still pretty hard to tell, my gut still says rhodactis (like rhodactis Indonesensis. . . But if the name is any indicator, those come from Indonesia and you rock came from the gulf?) though the “tentacles” on the periphery are throwing me. . . among other things haha

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

It reminds me Bellactis caeruleus, which apparently comes in a wide range of colors, including a very striking blue:

SWPOTD 1326

It's an interesting critter, and may be what you have.

 

[Dburr1014]

So it all comes down to where the rock came from???
Do tell!

 

[Mytoy]

Rock came from KP Aquatics. So, I think that’s another check in the RFA column.

 

[steveschuerger]

Definitely looks like an RFA in the clearer pics. Cool hitchhiker. I’ve gotten coral almost every time as a hitch hiker from gulf rock that I’ve ordered . KP is the only one I’ve never gotten coral.

 

[Mytoy]

Ha! Exact opposite for me. I’ve only ever gotten a coral / neme with this shipment. First time using KP and will probably always use them. i got several brittle stars, crabs, and even a small fish, which I think was a wrasse, but I didn’t see it after day 1 and I’m pretty sure it’s gone. Great LR.

Thanks for all the input. I’m going to go with it’s an RFA for now. I’ll post updates if this thing grows out. It’s currently retreating a little into the rock. It does not like the lights. This after I changed my scape after noticing it yesterday and moved it lower. Really doesn’t like the Blue lights. I can turn my whites to 100% and it will expand its tenticals, but with my blue on at less than 50 it’s completely retracted and compact. Hopefully it acclimates.

 

[MoshJosh]

It reminds me Bellactis caeruleus, which apparently comes in a wide range of colors, including a very striking blue:

SWPOTD 1326

It's an interesting critter, and may be what you have.

Dang, never even heard of that, but it looks pretty similar! Pretty cool!

 

[Mytoy]

It reminds me Bellactis caeruleus, which apparently comes in a wide range of colors, including a very striking blue:

SWPOTD 1326

It's an interesting critter, and may be what you have.

Looks interesting, however, mine doesn’t have the bulbous tips. Who knows, maybe it will develop that way. Thanks for sharing.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Looks interesting, however, mine doesn’t have the bulbous tips. Who knows, maybe it will develop that way. Thanks for sharing.

For what it's worth, like BTA's, these don't always have the bulbous tentacles (see the link below), and a few of the tentacles visible in a couple of your pics look like they may "bulb-up" if they decide to.

The link with the original pic from the description of the species (note that only a few of the tentacles look like they may be bulbous):

https://www.meerwasser-lexikon.de/imgHaupt/54783_5a3f9f8145010.jpg

 

[Mytoy]

For what it's worth, like BTA's, these don't always have the bulbous tentacles (see the link below), and a few of the tentacles visible in a couple of your pics look like they may "bulb-up" if they decide to.

The link with the original pic from the description of the species (note that only a few of the tentacles look like they may be bulbous):

https://www.meerwasser-lexikon.de/imgHaupt/54783_5a3f9f8145010.jpg

Very possible. It does resemble this pic in form.

 

[Reefing_addiction]

There is someone out there who has to know!

@fishguy242 who’s the nem expert?

 

[Mytoy]

I wish there was a way for me to take a better pic without turning my blues down. It seems happy right now. Lights are at peak and it’s wide open but with tentacles not as extended. We may have to wait until it grows out a little to get a positive ID. I really like RFA right now.

 

[fishguy242]

agree R Flower ? @F i s h y @bradleym ?

 

[bradleym]

agree R Flower ? @F i s h y @bradleym ?

The standard RFA in trade doesn't have quite so many tentacles in the central area of the oral disk, but the Phymanthus family has many more species than we typically see in stores. I'm betting it's a close relative and will act and grow much the same as a RFA. The only thing I will mention is that some relatives, like the Borneman's Anemone, can reproduce asexually, and become a problem over time.

 

[bradleym]

It reminds me Bellactis caeruleus, which apparently comes in a wide range of colors, including a very striking blue:

SWPOTD 1326

It's an interesting critter, and may be what you have.

Another interesting possibility! The tentacles in the picture are smaller, but who knows how they will morph in captivity.

 

[Mytoy]

The standard RFA in trade doesn't have quite so many tentacles in the central area of the oral disk, but the Phymanthus family has many more species than we typically see in stores. I'm betting it's a close relative and will act and grow much the same as a RFA. The only thing I will mention is that some relatives, like the Borneman's Anemone, can reproduce asexually, and become a problem over time.

Thanks for the info!