I just did a google search for plate coral propogation and found a website that had some sort of FAQ. It was more of a Q & A without the A. Here it is
Baby Plate corals - anthocauli in Fungiids 2/17/04
[The "baby" corals of which you speak are anthocauli (buds) on Fungiid corals. It is a common misconception that many Fungia never recover after they seem to have died (become denuded of tissue). Most in fact will begin to decalcify and issue these daughter satellites after just a few months. Leave those skeletons in the tank! When the clones grow big enough in the ocean, wave action/erosion and boring organisms dissolve the stem under the new bud and it breaks away to become free-living like its parent. The parent then continues to produce new buds. We have an article on this subject here at wetwebmedia.com at:
(I don't think links are allowed?)
best regards, Anthony Calfo>
From Travis:
Hi Alison, that sounds like you got a nice surprise after what must have been disappointing to see happen to your plate.
From what I've heard, the babies will grow their own skeletons and detach on their own. If they're anything like their close cousins the Euphylliids, they will recognize each other as the same species and not sting each other. However, I'm going to forward this to the most knowledgeable and helpful group of folks I know, Bob Fenner and company at wetwebmedia.com They should be able to elaborate on this with more information and more
expertise than I have to offer. Best of luck with your babies, and keep me posted! They are quite the beautiful corals, I have avoided them up until now because they are so easily damaged in transport, and rarely seem to recover. Travis
Joanne Moore writes:
> Hi Travis, I have a question for ya about plate corals. I have a long tentacled plate coral that recently died; however, it now has about 100 baby plates on it or " daughters." I know they are it's baby's because they each look like little plates, each having their own mouths and each being about the size of my pinky fingernail now. My question was, what happens when they get bigger, will they just walk off the parent plate or release into the water and attach somewhere else or what. I can't get anyone who knows anything about this. I love plates, but they are so toxic to the other corals if too close, so I worry about what will happen if they attach anywhere. I was also wondering, if I use a toothpick maybe that would work, because I have some reef friends and family who would like a few if I could get them off. Thanks for your time. Sincerely, Alison Moore of lake Stevens, Washington.
Now thats cool.
