Need help with ID on this mushroom or plate

[yveterinarian]

When I first began getting frags for my reef tank I found a hitch hiker coral that I couldn't identify.  When I described it to my LFS, they said it was a hairy mushroom.  I had thought it was a plate coral but it was so small that I couldn't tell properly.  I moved it to an area I could observe easily but not on the sand bed as I was told it couldn't be a plate.  Lately, I have noticed that it has become fairly hard and the outer covering is still soft so I moved it down to the sand bed.  I thought it was dead because of the lack of hairs now but under magnifying glass, I see it is still alive.  I have now found another one and have moved it to the sand.  Currently, the bigger one is 1" across and the smaller one is 1/4" across.  If someone knows what this is could you please let me know. The first picture is of the larger one that has now become hard and the other two are of the new one.  It has ridges and hairs.

All of these pictures were taken using the macro setting through the extreme magnification section of my magnifying glass.

 

[pulpfiction1]

i dont know what they are but they do look interesting

 

[yveterinarian]

I agree.  It's great what you can find hitch hiking in on some zoas!

 

[msteane]

From the first picture it looks like it has a ridged skeleton and a mouth in the middle.  If so, I would lean towards a fungia plate coral.

 

[yveterinarian]

From the first picture it looks like it has a ridged skeleton and a mouth in the middle.  If so, I would lean towards a fungia plate coral.

Thanks Michelle:  I was also leaning towards this and am doing so even more now.  It's amazing how it has changed from when it was little and had all the hairs into this larger one with the rigid skeleton.  Now that I have moved them both onto the sand, I can't wait to see what they do.

 

[spyd]

Fungi plates can actually move around the aquarium. So, if you notice them move a spot that suits them better, you will know what it is for sure. It definitely looks like a Fungi plate though

 

[yveterinarian]

Fungi plates can actually move around the aquarium. So, if you notice them move a spot that suits them better, you will know what it is for sure. It definitely looks like a Fungi plate though

Wow, how do they move?  Each of these seems to have adhered to a small outcropping of rock.  Does it let go and move ore does it take the tiny piece of rock with them?  Will the bend start to straighten out in the larger one? Since it wasn't on the sand in the beginning, it bent.

 

[msteane]

From what i've read/ seen when my plates got bumped or fell into an undesirable spot is that they inflate their flesh a lot so the look really puffy.  That allows any water currents to move them around and once they find a desirable spot they uninflate.

 

[spyd]

From what i've read/ seen when my plates got bumped or fell into an undesirable spot is that they inflate their flesh a lot so the look really puffy.  That allows any water currents to move them around and once they find a desirable spot they uninflate.

Exactly as Michelle stated.

 

[yveterinarian]

[quote author=msteane link=topic=3929.msg35346#msg35346 date=1357658300]
From what i've read/ seen when my plates got bumped or fell into an undesirable spot is that they inflate their flesh a lot so the look really puffy.  That allows any water currents to move them around and once they find a desirable spot they uninflate.

Exactly as Michelle stated.
[/quote]

That is so cool!  I noticed today, that the small one now seems to have two pups growing.  Will these eventually break off and go to their own spot, or do they all grow together?  The only pictures of plates that I have seen shows them individually.