Green Porites sp.

Green Porites sp, 1 month after being added to display. Picture taken September 2006, Nikon D70 Digital SLR, Sigma 105mm macro lens This unidentified species of Porites was originally dark brown when I first got it in August 2006 from a fellow hobbyist. It has steadily been changing colors from brown to yellow and appears it will be turning a green color. Porites tend to look very much like Montipora but usually have smaller polyps. The dark blob is a barnacle living inside the skeleton.

Green Porites sp, 5 months later. Picture taken February 2006, Nikon D70 Digital SLR, Sigma 105mm macro lens Over the past few months this coral has continued to change color to a green with cyan polyps and growth margins. It has encrusted a significantly sized base attachment (about 4 inches in circumference) to the rock as well. It has a horizontal projection from the rock of about 4 inches. UPDATE: This coral was lost during May 2008. A bubble tip anemone crawled over it and killed it within a week.