Puzzling Find

[jonesy9]

Hi all,

Hoping that the collective experience and knowledge can help identify an odd tank mate please.
I've tried lots of searching and even some AI and I'm getting a wide range of results. None of which quite match what I've found.

Background:
2 week old tank
Bought locally from someone giving it up
Started with existing live sand and some water to keep it going
A few snails and other small critters
Added rock that was very much not live
Added a couple of small coral frags at the weekend, including a zoa.

Yesterday evening I spotted a couple of glowing orange polyp looking heads on the back of one of the rocks.
Couldn't make out what it was but looked a bit like a zoa.

This morning it was on the sand next to the rock.
By the time in come back a few minutes later it was back in the exact same spot on the rock.

Over the course of this morning I watched it float/tumble out of the rock crevice onto the sand. Seemingly roll around a small amount.
It could have been the wavemaker blowing it around a bit until it miraculously 'jumped' back into the rock in the exact same spot.
It rolled around a little to find a snug fit in the crevice.

Really odd looking thing. Sort of like a fuzzy pea sized ball with 4 of 5 polyp style heads around it.
Managed to carely remove it. Current in a frag pot in some water in the sump.

Got a video of it but it's over 1GB so adding a few pictures. Apologies for the terrible quality. Finding it hard to get a good picture.

 

[tbrown]

Looks like a bundle of Zoas.

 

[tbrown]

Does it only have the 1 rock or was there live rock in the tank when you purchased it?

 

[painter1982]

It’s not a fish. Not an octopus. Not a crab. Hope this helps.

 

[BryanM]

CAn't believe I'm about to say this, but this time it might be nice to see the contrasting colors with blue lights too.

But at the moment I'm agreeing, looks like a small bundle of zoas.

 

[jonesy9]

Thanks all, will try to get a photo under blue light. My phone doesn't pick up the glow so it just looks all blue. Will see if I can get an orange lens.
I've currently still got it in the sump.

 

[JoJosReef]

Unattached group of zoa polyps, most likely. Not a nem moving around of its own accord, just zoas blown around and landing here and there and back again. Got a few of those in my tank. Difficulty is when I ignore them and find them weeks later attached and growing in just the wrong place!

 

[JoJosReef]

Note: if they are like orange oxides/bam bams, etc, (or worse, firecrackers), they can be fast growers and take over a lot of real estate, so might be worthwhile gluing them to their forever home.

 

[bluemon]

Definitely zoas

 

[jonesy9]

Thanks all. I've allowed him back in the tank and will keep an eye on him and will try to get a photo under blue light. This is the frag he must have come from. I'd noticed that it came a bit unstuck from the plug so glued it back down. It looks like the right hand side had lifted and flopped over to the left. Maybe the little zoa cluster actually broke from this and that's the gap on the right.