ID Hitchiker pls

[Lionfish Lair]

I'm glad the extra "i" helps better identify the species... Lol :p

Inorite! That's almost not worth the effort!

 

[Wilsoni]

It's been a good hitchhiker week. I see something cool and rare (the anemone here) and someone has a for realz fire worm, the Big Boss Hermodice carunculata.

Well I'll add some fuel to the fire and post a pic of my beautiful unidentified NPS species that I found at my LFS growing on a dead gorg... It has crazy long translucent tentacles with white nematocysts... At first it appeared to be a Devonshire Cup Coral but upon feeding it, it's started to grow new heads around the base... I'm pretty sure it's some type of cup coral, just not sure which one... Haha

 

[Lionfish Lair]

It's funny how these things bring me joy. Sometimes I think I spend too much time at it, but I cannot deny I find myself grinning like a fool when I see something cool.

 

[Wilsoni]

Inorite! That's almost not worth the effort!

Haha I think species reclassification needs a discussion started if there hasn't been one already. I'd like to learn more about it. At the end of the day I find it humorous though.

 

[Wilsoni]

It's funny how these things bring me joy. Sometimes I think I spend too much time at it, but I cannot deny I find myself grinning like a fool when I see something cool.

Trust me I'm very similar in that sense, I love quirky little oddities. When I saw the "cup coral" at my LFS, it was partially covered in sand and I'm positive I was the only one that ever noticed it. It brought me great joy bring a random unknown hitchhiker home, not knowing exactly what it was. Well I knew it was LPS/NPS as it had a skeletal structure and I could see tiny tentacles peeking out but that was about it... Haha my first thought was that it was a Balano but I knew upon seeing it open for the first time that, that wasn't the case...

Anyways I don't mean to hijack this thread, I'll get some pics and create my own thread this evening :)

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Anyways I don't mean to hijack this thread, I'll get some pics and create my own thread this evening :)

Ya, oops. Basically, we think you're critter is cool @Cherim7. Maybe not the friendliest hitchhiker, but cool.

 

[Roboson]

Yeah, I'd like to see more pictures of this strange anemone.

 

[Cherim7]

Another little one on the zoas

 

[Cherim7]

 

[Roboson]

Wow you have them everywhere. Is the white one something different or is it just a different color of the same thing?

 

[Tahoe61]

Both are anemones, type specific I do not know, they both look to be Hell Fires capable of potent stings. The zoanthids look to be wild colonies secondary to the sponge growth, algae and presence of the anemones.

 

[JacoJs]

Hi everyone.

This is actually my unknown Hitchhiker, @Cherim7 posted here for me.

Thanks for all the replies, I have a question or two though, if it is a Hellfire anemone why do the zoas around it look so happy?


This is where the one that is now in the substrate was on the rock,

I moved the rock around to get a better look at it and it completely retracted and I thought it was gone, When I moved the rock again it was in the substrate, the smaller one in between the zoas have not moved though.

 

[Cherim7]

There we go. Here is the owner of the "vicious" critter haha

 

[Tahoe61]

Physical contact does not necessarily mean that the neighbor will trigger the release of nematocysts.
What geographical area were these zoanthids harvested from?
A concern I might have would be that a Goby or bottom dwelling fish may wander into the anemone.

 

[JacoJs]

Haha Thanks @Cherim7 :)

@Tahoe61 I currently have only 1 Midas Blenny in the tank, some snails, 2 big brittle stars and 2 cleaner shrimp.

How can I go about making absolutely certain it is a Hellfire Anemone? Touching it I guess but Im sure I touched both when I was pulling out some of the red beard looking stuff? How serious will such a sting be? For a human?

 

[JacoJs]

This looks like what I have doesnt it?

http://southeastqueenslandm.aforumfree.com/t1217-anemones-and-sea-pens-found-near-brisbane-in-seq

@Tahoe61, I will try to find out where the rock and zoas came from, will post tomorrow.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Hello! Hello!

I actually don't have much doubt it's a Megalactis hemprichii. I don't know how bad they sting and what that feels like to a human. We were warned about them in scuba class, so I guess divers have mauled them and had effects. Nothing major.

 

[Lionfish Lair]

 

[Naiad]

I'm going to put its sting between a fireworm and a fire urchin. This only going by the reactions of others as I have never touched things I was told not to [emoji12] . BTW never touch a true fire urchin!

 

[Lionfish Lair]

Are you in Africa?