Utter Chaos
A variant of Palythoa (Palythoa grandis)
Representative Palythoaphoto — a dedicated image of this exact morph isn't available yet.
A large-polyp paly with a dark purple-to-black base splattered and swirled with yellow-green and accented by bright orange skirts, giving an almost psychedelic, mottled look.
📜 Backstory
One of the most iconic named button polyps in the hobby, stocked by Tidal Gardens (who list it under Zoanthids) and sold as a 'paly' by vendors like Pieces of the Ocean and Cultivated Reef. The hobby naming convention is fuzzy here, lumping larger polyps under Palythoa, so it is traded under both labels. World Wide Corals markets a sister piece, the 'Utter Peace' Paly, as a variation on the classic. The original lineage is debated, but it has been a high-end trade staple for well over a decade.
Keeper tips for this variant
Give it moderate light (PAR ~100-200) and low-to-medium flow. It can be touchy when first fragged, so place it somewhere stable and let it settle before moving it.