Zoa Sizes

[snowlynx]

Hi,

I have seen some reef tank photos with some Zoas that look pretty
large in diameter, maybe 1/2"-1" O.D.? they have few polyps surrounding them.

Looks like most frags sold are very tiny, few mm, but some have lots of
polyps surrounding them.

Are the larger size premium grade ones? If not, what is the magic
for Zoas to grow bigger vs. quantity?

Also curious, what is growth rate for 1-2 polyps, weeks, months, years?

[mike61289]

I could be wrong, but I think you're confusing zoanthids with palythoas. Palythoa tend to be larger, as you're describing, whereas zoanthids are on the smaller side.

As far as growth goes, palythoa tend to grow faster than zoanthids. I've seen some of mine grow 1-2 new polyps every couple of weeks. Zoanthids can grow fast or slow, depending on the species. My rastas grow a new head or two every month. Same goes for my darth mauls. Hornets tend to grow much slower. I've had mine for 3 months now and haven't seen any new polyps. From what I've read, they're one of the slowest growing zoanthids out there.

One final note is that some zoanthids take time to acclimate to a new tank. We're talking months, if not a year. Some species won't start growing until they are completely settled. A good example of these zoas would be fruit loops. I've heard that it could take up to a year for them to start multiplying, but when they do start reproducing, they can take over a rock pretty quickly. My fruit loops have been in my tank for 6 months. There might be a new polyp or two, but I haven't seen much growth from them compared to other species that I keep. They're always open though so I'm not complaining.

Hope this was useful.

[snowlynx]

Originally Posted by mike61289

I could be wrong, but I think you're confusing zoanthids with palythoas. Palythoa tend to be larger, as you're describing, whereas zoanthids are on the smaller side.

As far as growth goes, palythoa tend to grow faster than zoanthids. I've seen some of mine grow 1-2 new polyps every couple of weeks. Zoanthids can grow fast or slow, depending on the species. My rastas grow a new head or two every month. Same goes for my darth mauls. Hornets tend to grow much slower. I've had mine for 3 months now and haven't seen any new polyps. From what I've read, they're one of the slowest growing zoanthids out there.

One final note is that some zoanthids take time to acclimate to a new tank. We're talking months, if not a year. Some species won't start growing until they are completely settled. A good example of these zoas would be fruit loops. I've heard that it could take up to a year for them to start multiplying, but when they do start reproducing, they can take over a rock pretty quickly. My fruit loops have been in my tank for 6 months. There might be a new polyp or two, but I haven't seen much growth from them compared to other species that I keep. They're always open though so I'm not complaining.

Hope this was useful.

Yes, very helpful, thank you.

Ijust ordered some green palys. I should look at those reef photos again.
I didn't want to post someone's tank on the forum.

Rastas are hard to find :-|

[sh4rkbyt3]

Rastas are on my hit list also snowlynx . I've seen them online but overnight shipping for me right now isn't an option but when I can...... I will.

What mike said is absolutely true and sometimes you'll find that with some of the mushrooms also. Some tend to be picky about their conditions while others seem to thrive for no reason. I've had faster growth with brighter Zoas and Palys as compared to many darker ones and with mushrooms it's been the opposite.

Rastas are hard to find locally I think but I've seen quite a few online albeit at a pretty premium price. It's been eye opening to see the color varieties that are available now compared to say just 10-15 yrs ago of softies.

Good luck !