Torch Bailout

[Saltyanimals]

We've all read about coral and polyp bailout as part of the survival mechanics. I've read this applies to torch, but actually never seen one. Can't tell if what I have is an example. What do you think?

This is a gold indo torch. See how the right side is detached and basically still attached to what I presume to the rest of fresh or other tentacles. Circled where it's "bailing out". The odd thing is the general extension and the entire coral looks healthy to me. Matter of fact, I've gone from a single splitting head to now almost 3 distinct heads in only about 3 months. I'm very tempted to help it separate and see if I can use the opportunity to frag and glue the bailed out piece to see if it survives. Leaving it alone I risk it blowing away when it detaches into parts of my tank where I'll never see it again.

Does this look like anyone else's experience with a torch?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Looks to me it's growing a new head.

Congratulations.


My torch garden:

 

[Saltyanimals]

That’s the thing. New head would split from an existing head. The other heads when forming sort of split, pinch in the middle to close into distinct heads. The piece circled is breaking off and basically hanging and flopping around in the flow. Only thing keeping it on is connected tissue to the other tentacles and not the colony base.

aside from hanging loosely waiting for it to break off fully. ... it has healthy extension. Weird.

anyone else see this?

 

[Flippers4pups]

What's your mag and calcium at?

 

[Smcevoy]

Beautiful torch looks to be splitting, I had one do same years ago on my last tank

 

[GabeM]

I've had PBO years ago when I first started and that is not anywhere near what it looked like.

 

[Saltyanimals]

Alk 8.5, calc 430, mag 1480. Sps tank so lower in nutrient and higher flow. Was hard finding a slower flow corner but I think it’s in on now. That’s why I can’t figure out the stresser.

 

[Saltyanimals]

Updating to document this experiment. Maybe torches do reproduce successfully from bailout and not necessarily from the traditional splitting of heads.

So I did have 2 bailout from the original pic. I was able to recover the pieces given it dropped off and landed into a patch of zoas which helped. I was able to remove and glue to a frag plug. Below is a top view and bad side view. These aren't great pics because of the digital iphone cam zoom, but I think you can see they are distinct "mini" heads with their own tentacles. They seen to retract and recede just like a full grown torch. The experiment here is to see if they survive and how they'll grow. These pics are about a week after gluing them to frag.

 

[Saltyanimals]

Updating to document this experiment. Maybe torches do reproduce successfully from bailout and not necessarily from the traditional splitting of heads.

So I did have 2 bailout from the original pic. I was able to recover the pieces given it dropped off and landed into a patch of zoas which helped. I was able to remove and glue to a frag plug. Below is a top view and bad side view. These aren't great pics because of the digital iphone cam zoom, but I think you can see they are distinct "mini" heads with their own tentacles. They seen to retract and recede just like a full grown torch. The experiment here is to see if they survive and how they'll grow. These pics are about a week after gluing them to frag.

Well. the two bailed out pieces didn't make it. After about 2 weeks the polps retracted and just disappeared leaving just a hollow skeleton. I kept it in a quiet corner with very low flow so experiment was unsuccessful for me. Oh well. mother colony still growing at a surprisingly fast pace so good news there. Not sure why some folks have said indo golds are slow growers. 1.5-> 2 -> 4 distinct heads in about 4 months is pretty fast for the hobby.