ID help Tort or Austera?

[MurphyJ]

I was told this was WWC Yellow Tip Austera, but the color and structure doesn’t look right. Looks more Tort to me.

 

[gilman]

Looks Austera to me

 

[Dana Riddle]

Coral identification is difficult. It involves microscopic examination of the coral using using Veron's Coral ID soft. Usually (not always!) 20 or more traits to examine. Send me a frag and I'll ID it for you. JK. Perhaps the importer made a positive ID...

 

[MurphyJ]

Hah! Only if you sign a waiver that I am not responsible for the complete take-over of your tank. Break one small tip off and it will grow. I have several “oh, dang” popping up.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

It looks different than the wwc yellow tip. That coral was cultured for a while and there are a lot of looks likes out there. Maybe take a few more pics of it and someone might be able to give a more educated answer. I still think it’s an austera.

 

[jda]

It is probably an A. Austera. A. Austera are often called "torts" even though they are not A. Tortuosa.

Yellow tip A. Austera are very common in the hobby. They range from nice to outstanding depending on the strain and lighting - they can take a lot of light, but don't need a lot. WWC has a common one, but there are others.

 

[MurphyJ]

It looks different than the wwc yellow tip. That coral was cultured for a while and there are a lot of looks likes out there. Maybe take a few more pics of it and someone might be able to give a more educated answer. I still think it’s an austera.

I agree. I looked at theirs and didn’t see a match. Just that it is in agreement that it is Austera is good. I like to try and match my corals to the species for placement. Austera is upper reef and tort is lagoon. Thank you for the reply!

 

[MurphyJ]

It is probably an A. Austera. A. Austera are often called "torts" even though they are not A. Tortuosa.

Yellow tip A. Austera are very common in the hobby. They range from nice to outstanding depending on the strain and lighting - they can take a lot of light, but don't need a lot. WWC has a common one, but there are others.

Thank you for the reply. Mine is in 300 par and this keeps it a deep blue with the yellow tips and bright green at the base. Polyps are maroon in color. Branches are growing up so think I will leave it and let it find the light it likes.