coral warfare

[karimwassef]

I underestimated the growth rate of a couple of corals and now I'm worried that they're going to take over and kill the others around them.

I hoped that the corals would basically be able to keep each other at bay and grow in the empty areas...

Do you think that's likely or is the more aggressive coral likely to just grow over the others?

This xenia just went nuts - growing up into the air. Should I move the other corals? They're all glued so I'd have to frag:
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/A5174F86-AE81-4207-84C8-A3CCAEB9BAEE_zpsflsqy1xx.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/A5174F86-AE81-4207-84C8-A3CCAEB9BAEE_zpsflsqy1xx.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo A5174F86-AE81-4207-84C8-A3CCAEB9BAEE_zpsflsqy1xx.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/b1377afa-55b3-41e4-bc85-b785eb40541f_zps5lrybkop.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/b1377afa-55b3-41e4-bc85-b785eb40541f_zps5lrybkop.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo b1377afa-55b3-41e4-bc85-b785eb40541f_zps5lrybkop.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/8A2D6F23-F1DB-4EE3-AC06-52B1AAFB0664_zpsblrwyh3v.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/8A2D6F23-F1DB-4EE3-AC06-52B1AAFB0664_zpsblrwyh3v.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 8A2D6F23-F1DB-4EE3-AC06-52B1AAFB0664_zpsblrwyh3v.jpg"/></a>

Here are the frags in June
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/142F8363-5147-41F2-92A3-FE4839B3FAD3_zpsqlnxg6pi.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/142F8363-5147-41F2-92A3-FE4839B3FAD3_zpsqlnxg6pi.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 142F8363-5147-41F2-92A3-FE4839B3FAD3_zpsqlnxg6pi.jpg"/></a>


This purple monti is moving about 1/4" a week... should I frag the corals on the rock to the right of let them duke it out? It's already growing up and over the zoas on the left rock, but they're fighting back.

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/A57F8FCF-4B64-40F6-BBC1-676626945DBA_zpsypragasu.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/A57F8FCF-4B64-40F6-BBC1-676626945DBA_zpsypragasu.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo A57F8FCF-4B64-40F6-BBC1-676626945DBA_zpsypragasu.jpg"/></a>
<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/60552F0B-8C52-4C83-AC71-75D0FA5D090A_zpstqafwthm.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/60552F0B-8C52-4C83-AC71-75D0FA5D090A_zpstqafwthm.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 60552F0B-8C52-4C83-AC71-75D0FA5D090A_zpstqafwthm.jpg"/></a>

Here it is a few weeks ago.

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/10203F67-4E4F-4201-A532-69F8ECEB2201_zpsiaxcq2gt.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/10203F67-4E4F-4201-A532-69F8ECEB2201_zpsiaxcq2gt.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 10203F67-4E4F-4201-A532-69F8ECEB2201_zpsiaxcq2gt.jpg"/></a>
Here it is a few months ago - I moved a few corals around since then

<a href="http://s1062.photobucket.com/user/karimwassef/media/9509A84F-479D-4E31-AA2D-1CAF3E457D87_zpsb0td2lpr.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1062.photobucket.com/albums/t496/karimwassef/9509A84F-479D-4E31-AA2D-1CAF3E457D87_zpsb0td2lpr.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 9509A84F-479D-4E31-AA2D-1CAF3E457D87_zpsb0td2lpr.jpg"/></a>

[pstank1]

Xenia grows like a weed, you have to keep it trimmed to try and keep it under control. It's also a coral I will never put into one of my tanks again. They have a tendency to pop up in places you don't want them growing. Similar to pocillopora.

Encrusting monti's and zoa's/paly's don't go in my tank unless they are on their own rocks, with no chance of growing into my other corals. That way they can completely cover whatever rock they're on, then i can just make frags of the parts growing in the sand.

[karimwassef]

The monti did come on its own rock... It went horizontal and grabbed on to the next rock over.

So- prune back the Xenia or frag the sps it's encroaching on?

How about the purple monti. What would you do?

[Pife]

The monti did come on its own rock... It went horizontal and grabbed on to the next rock over.

So- prune back the Xenia or frag the sps it's encroaching on?

How about the purple monti. What would you do?

I would remove the xenia.

[m0nkie]

The monti did come on its own rock... It went horizontal and grabbed on to the next rock over.

So- prune back the Xenia or frag the sps it's encroaching on?

How about the purple monti. What would you do?

I would remove Xenia and Encrusting Monti asap.. Monti you can leave on an island rock. They are very hardy and will kill everything it covers.. Xenia, just keep pruning. they will keep growing.

[shih87]

I used to love Xenia, but after a while.... can't wait to remove them... ;-(

[karimwassef]

It's all relative
Xenia is still better than algae :)
Maybe...

[ReefWreak]

Xenia actually is a pretty decent nutrient export that you can sell for decent money as well.

I would definitely keep an eye on the xenia or just remove it. For the monti, since it grows slowly enough, I would put rocks in it's growth path, so that when it grows towards other corals, it'll cover those rocks, and you can just break those off, sell them, and then put new rocks in it's place.

The monti is less of a worry too, because it may not be able to do damage to other corals of yours that are slower growers. I have a birdsnest growing next to an ORA echinata, and the birdsnest has to grow out and away from the echinata because anywhere that they touch, the birdsnest arms get killed/digested by the echinata, so I don't have to worry about that intersection much since the echinata grows much slower.

[karimwassef]

Xenia actually is a pretty decent nutrient export that you can sell for decent money as well.

I would definitely keep an eye on the xenia or just remove it. For the monti, since it grows slowly enough, I would put rocks in it's growth path, so that when it grows towards other corals, it'll cover those rocks, and you can just break those off, sell them, and then put new rocks in it's place.

The monti is less of a worry too, because it may not be able to do damage to other corals of yours that are slower growers. I have a birdsnest growing next to an ORA echinata, and the birdsnest has to grow out and away from the echinata because anywhere that they touch, the birdsnest arms get killed/digested by the echinata, so I don't have to worry about that intersection much since the echinata grows much slower.

The monti is growing much faster than other corals. I had zoanthids on the left side of the rock. They stung the encroaching monti, so it went up and over them. They're slowly dying in the shadow under the coral ledge it has created.

I have two kinds of birdsnest, a hydnophora, two kinds of acropora and two other kinds of monti (red and green) on the rock to the right. They're good growers but not like the purple.

I think the ideas of the rock interceptors is great. I wish I had thought of it myself (or asked sooner). As it is, there not much room to put a spacer under I make an epoxy wall.

Thank you!