Thread:Snorglepuss/@comment-27541905-20190804214514/@comment-3049657-20190910020444

I raised 3 Blue Sea Monks with Denizanasi, but had the first larva evolve into a Sea Monk when I missed a feeding. So, it seems that feeding "special" variant feed works immediately; you can zone out and back in to your Mog Garden to see the result, if it evolved or not on the dice roll. Then, Japanese midnight comes around again, and, if you're on Personal Growth and the critter is at 3 stars, there's a "normal" evolutionary dice roll that occurs, from which it could evolve or not.

So, if you want the "variant" evolution, you should feed the special feed before it reaches 3 stars (if you're leaving it on Personal Growth), or, you should put it on Enjoying the Moment to ensure it doesn't go thru a "normal" evolution. That seems to be what's happening to you.