Neon green Sinu and neon green Nepthea..

Scuba Josh · 02/26/2007, 12:51 PM

How can I tell the difference...the store owner wasn't sure if the coral I bought was which. Does anyone have pics of each?

Jamokie01 · 02/26/2007, 07:38 PM

Sinularia has smaller polyps than Nepthya. Nepthya has polyps that are fairly large and quite feathery.

lvreefer · 02/27/2007, 12:19 PM

Nepthya sp
Sinularia sp.

Jamokie01 · 02/27/2007, 02:02 PM

I said it backwards didnt I, my bad.

gflat65 · 02/27/2007, 07:06 PM

I always thought that polyp size and structure were the determining factor, but someone posted that you have to view the spicules under a microsope to know for sure. I'm sure there has to be another way to tell, though, as I have both what I would call a green sinularia and a green Nephthea and they look very very different in polyp structure... They're not like sps where so many other factors take part in their actual growth form, making it difficult to ID... Of course, I'm not going to take the time to cut one and look at it's spicules (seems like an invasion of privacy

) so I'll just (potentially) incorrectly call the one that looks like a Nephthea a Nephthea and the one that looks like Sinularia a Sinularia. Mine originally came from garf and was called Nephthea, so I'll trust that a research foundation already looked up it's skirt

.

gflat65 · 02/27/2007, 07:13 PM

And BTW, I don't agree with Chris on those ID's (don't get me wtrong, I love reefermadness and Chris is usually pretty close on ID's). Below is a link to garf's website. It is one of the most difficult websites to find anything on and is not userfriendly at all, but if it doesn't display the Family Nephtheidae, go to the About All Corals folder, open it and click on Family Nephtheidae. The Nephthea is the second pic.

http://www.garf.org/

gflat65 · 02/27/2007, 07:15 PM

Sorry, third pic down once in Family Nephtheidae.

edsimmons · 02/27/2007, 07:58 PM

"Green Tonga finger leather"

Front "Palau Finger Leather",Back Green Nepthea

gflat65 · 02/27/2007, 09:51 PM

The Palau is much brighter than the regular ole neon green Nephthea, isn't it? I've always wanted one (and someone local has one if I can get him over the fear of cutting it). I've not seen his, but someone I know and trust has and said it blows the neon green Nephthea I have out of the water (and the Nephthea glows toxic neon green). What lights are those under? I've got a monster colony under 175W Ushio 14K's and a smaller colony under VHO's and get better color under the VHO's.

edsimmons · 02/28/2007, 12:58 PM

gftat65 if you can get a cutting of the Palau for free or cheep do it I payed $69.00 from ZoMania (they claim it extinct in the wild)!as far as being brighter maybe a little bit.My lighting is 8 x 54w t-5 5-Blue 3-white over a 55 gallon.

Scuba Josh · 02/28/2007, 02:37 PM

this is very confusing as they all look so simillar

gflat65 · 02/28/2007, 03:11 PM

edsimmons,

If I can get one, it'll cost me, but I'm hoping to trade something for it

. Love the Easterhead avatar

.

Josh,

They are very similar. I use polyp structure as a differentiation, which may not be as accurate as I'd like it to be, but short of cutting into one and looking into a microscope, I don't know another way to tell...

gflat65 · 02/28/2007, 04:27 PM

Here are some attempts to show the difference in polyp structure I was talking about. The camera is not good at tank shots, but here we go...

What I call Nephthea-this is the baby colony

Note the polyps are more basket shaped, as garf mentions.

Here is what I call Sinularia. The polyps don't have as many 'finger's off the main 'fingers'

and tend to stay closed to a more cylindrical look than the Nephthea, which is usually more open.

Krazy · 02/28/2007, 08:32 PM

gflat65 : what you call a sinulara is actually a colt coral, nice sized one too

gflat65 · 02/28/2007, 11:27 PM

I'm -pretty sure it's not a colt's... They are much different in structure with alot more polyps more densly packed. I've never seen a colt's that wasn't brownish, either. I don't have any colt's in any of my tanks anymore. I could be mistaken, but I'm about 99.999% sure it's not a colt's.

gflat65 · 03/01/2007, 08:13 AM

I can't believe ho hard it is to find a picture of Cladiella (colts coral)... Here is the best I could find, but it is small. You can see that the polyps are tuighter to the stalk than the ones I have shown. There is nothing that I could find with a close up of the polyps...

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Cladiella.JPG

edsimmons · 03/01/2007, 12:15 PM

The common name â€œcolt coralâ€ IMO should not be used because there at least 3-4 different species of soft coral that are commonly call colt coral. I deal w/ landscape plants on a daily basis and we use only botanical name because like â€œColt coralâ€ there are many many plant that go by the same common name. So to definitively say that a colt is very misleading because depending where you are geographically or who you talk to one mans colt is another mans Sinularia or Cladillia or Capinella ECT.

gflat65 · 03/01/2007, 06:06 PM

Good point, Ed. I'm used to Colt's being Cladiella and Kenya's being Capnella. Common names are often misleading...

invincible569 · 03/10/2007, 06:22 AM

gflat, how long have you had both of those corals and what have you fed them?

gflat65 · 03/10/2007, 07:54 AM

I've had them both for about 2-3 years and only feed them light (as in VHO's)

.

syrinx · 03/10/2007, 09:41 AM

The problem with scientific names is that when they become common names without the proper taxonimy then there is nothing to fall back on!

02/26/2007, 12:51 PM	#1
Scuba Josh Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Lower Hudson Valley, NY Posts: 245	Neon green Sinu and neon green Nepthea.. How can I tell the difference...the store owner wasn't sure if the coral I bought was which. Does anyone have pics of each? __________________ Rics Rock!!! Current Tank Info: Planted tank and 29 Reef.

02/26/2007, 07:38 PM	#2
Jamokie01 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Boardman, Ohio Posts: 506	Sinularia has smaller polyps than Nepthya. Nepthya has polyps that are fairly large and quite feathery. __________________ 90 gal reef LPS, Softies, and Gorgonians Pair of Ocellaris Clownfish School of 5 Green Chromis Blue Morpho Tang Yellow Tang Pink Spotted Goby Current Tank Info: 90 gal reef, 30 gal refugium, 432 watts T-5, Coralife 220 Skimmer, Mag 7 Return, 3 Penguin 660 Powerheads

02/27/2007, 02:02 PM	#4
Jamokie01 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Boardman, Ohio Posts: 506	I said it backwards didnt I, my bad. __________________ 90 gal reef LPS, Softies, and Gorgonians Pair of Ocellaris Clownfish School of 5 Green Chromis Blue Morpho Tang Yellow Tang Pink Spotted Goby Current Tank Info: 90 gal reef, 30 gal refugium, 432 watts T-5, Coralife 220 Skimmer, Mag 7 Return, 3 Penguin 660 Powerheads

02/27/2007, 07:06 PM	#5
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	I always thought that polyp size and structure were the determining factor, but someone posted that you have to view the spicules under a microsope to know for sure. I'm sure there has to be another way to tell, though, as I have both what I would call a green sinularia and a green Nephthea and they look very very different in polyp structure... They're not like sps where so many other factors take part in their actual growth form, making it difficult to ID... Of course, I'm not going to take the time to cut one and look at it's spicules (seems like an invasion of privacy) so I'll just (potentially) incorrectly call the one that looks like a Nephthea a Nephthea and the one that looks like Sinularia a Sinularia. Mine originally came from garf and was called Nephthea, so I'll trust that a research foundation already looked up it's skirt. __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/27/2007, 07:13 PM	#6
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	And BTW, I don't agree with Chris on those ID's (don't get me wtrong, I love reefermadness and Chris is usually pretty close on ID's). Below is a link to garf's website. It is one of the most difficult websites to find anything on and is not userfriendly at all, but if it doesn't display the Family Nephtheidae, go to the About All Corals folder, open it and click on Family Nephtheidae. The Nephthea is the second pic. http://www.garf.org/ __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/27/2007, 12:19 PM	#3
lvreefer Registered Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Sin City Posts: 1,163	Nepthya sp Sinularia sp.

02/27/2007, 07:15 PM	#7
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	Sorry, third pic down once in Family Nephtheidae. __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/27/2007, 07:58 PM	#8
edsimmons Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Roseville,CA Posts: 2,165	"Green Tonga finger leather" Front "Palau Finger Leather",Back Green Nepthea __________________ "First you get good, then you get fast, then grouchiness sets in." "Experience is the best Teacher....You usually get it just after you need it"

02/27/2007, 09:51 PM	#9
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	The Palau is much brighter than the regular ole neon green Nephthea, isn't it? I've always wanted one (and someone local has one if I can get him over the fear of cutting it). I've not seen his, but someone I know and trust has and said it blows the neon green Nephthea I have out of the water (and the Nephthea glows toxic neon green). What lights are those under? I've got a monster colony under 175W Ushio 14K's and a smaller colony under VHO's and get better color under the VHO's. __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/28/2007, 12:58 PM	#10
edsimmons Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Roseville,CA Posts: 2,165	gftat65 if you can get a cutting of the Palau for free or cheep do it I payed $69.00 from ZoMania (they claim it extinct in the wild)!as far as being brighter maybe a little bit.My lighting is 8 x 54w t-5 5-Blue 3-white over a 55 gallon. __________________ "First you get good, then you get fast, then grouchiness sets in." "Experience is the best Teacher....You usually get it just after you need it"

02/28/2007, 02:37 PM	#11
Scuba Josh Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Lower Hudson Valley, NY Posts: 245	this is very confusing as they all look so simillar __________________ Rics Rock!!! Current Tank Info: Planted tank and 29 Reef.

02/28/2007, 03:11 PM	#12
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	edsimmons, If I can get one, it'll cost me, but I'm hoping to trade something for it. Love the Easterhead avatar. Josh, They are very similar. I use polyp structure as a differentiation, which may not be as accurate as I'd like it to be, but short of cutting into one and looking into a microscope, I don't know another way to tell... __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/28/2007, 04:27 PM	#13
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	Here are some attempts to show the difference in polyp structure I was talking about. The camera is not good at tank shots, but here we go... What I call Nephthea-this is the baby colony Note the polyps are more basket shaped, as garf mentions. Here is what I call Sinularia. The polyps don't have as many 'finger's off the main 'fingers' and tend to stay closed to a more cylindrical look than the Nephthea, which is usually more open. __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

02/28/2007, 08:32 PM	#14
Krazy Registered Member. Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Albany, NY Posts: 2,941	gflat65 : what you call a sinulara is actually a colt coral, nice sized one too

02/28/2007, 11:27 PM	#15
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	I'm -pretty sure it's not a colt's... They are much different in structure with alot more polyps more densly packed. I've never seen a colt's that wasn't brownish, either. I don't have any colt's in any of my tanks anymore. I could be mistaken, but I'm about 99.999% sure it's not a colt's. __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

03/01/2007, 08:13 AM	#16
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	I can't believe ho hard it is to find a picture of Cladiella (colts coral)... Here is the best I could find, but it is small. You can see that the polyps are tuighter to the stalk than the ones I have shown. There is nothing that I could find with a close up of the polyps... http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Cladiella.JPG __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

03/01/2007, 12:15 PM	#17
edsimmons Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Roseville,CA Posts: 2,165	The common name â€œcolt coralâ€ IMO should not be used because there at least 3-4 different species of soft coral that are commonly call colt coral. I deal w/ landscape plants on a daily basis and we use only botanical name because like â€œColt coralâ€ there are many many plant that go by the same common name. So to definitively say that a colt is very misleading because depending where you are geographically or who you talk to one mans colt is another mans Sinularia or Cladillia or Capinella ECT. __________________ "First you get good, then you get fast, then grouchiness sets in." "Experience is the best Teacher....You usually get it just after you need it"

03/01/2007, 06:06 PM	#18
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	Good point, Ed. I'm used to Colt's being Cladiella and Kenya's being Capnella. Common names are often misleading... __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

03/10/2007, 06:22 AM	#19
invincible569 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Posts: 5,715	gflat, how long have you had both of those corals and what have you fed them?

03/10/2007, 07:54 AM	#20
gflat65 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Montgomery, Al Posts: 8,720	I've had them both for about 2-3 years and only feed them light (as in VHO's). __________________ Was it for this my life I sought... Maybe so Maybe not.

03/10/2007, 09:41 AM	#21
syrinx Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: champaign Posts: 3,160	The problem with scientific names is that when they become common names without the proper taxonimy then there is nothing to fall back on! __________________ My views are based on 49years as an aquarist, 25 years as a pro reef consultant, 10 years of owning a LFS, and the results of thousands of customers tanks. But I am always learning.