color changing mushroom

[nicksgirl]

I have a mushroom that changes color every day. I am wondering if this is uncommon. The color ranges from rust-brown to midnight blue and seems to hinge on water temperature or maybe photosynthesis. Most of the time it is a reddish purple. Here is a picture of the mid-afternoon color.

I have it placed at the bottom of my tank, in a bit of a shadow from a ledge. I like the blue color and this seems to keep it bluer. The lights are 10k pc and actinic 3. Any guess what kind of mushroom it is?

[Devilishturtles]

You have a Discosoma sp. mushroom, which can change color that will vary with lighting and water quality. I have some Rhodactis sp. mushrooms that were bright green when I bought them, and are purple in my tank. IMO, it's a lighting thing. Higher light will give one color, dimmer light will give another color. They don't need as much light to survive, and too much light can be detrimental, so if you like that color I'd keep them there. Just a thing that happens with them, and is common.

[melosu58]

Here are mine. I had one on a rock when I first started. Mine range from red to blue to purple

[nicksgirl]

Cool!!

[mnnlaw]

If I were to pick some of these up at the local would these multiply at all. I am looking to add things to my tank and these look cool?

[melosu58]

With the right conditions yes they will

[nicksgirl]

Mine have spead. They didn't do much for a couple of months but then spead off the original rock onto the adjacent rock in only a couple of weeks after I moved them into my tank. I have 240 watts (other details on the info page) The shrooms are on the bottom of the tank, a little bit under a ledge.