Recovering Tubastrea

[Sanghy]

3 weeks go I went to the only LFS that sells corals, to be honest I was shocked by the state of the corals there, many of them obviously dieing and some completely dead.

They were kept in a room with one very small window and no other lighting.


I wouldn't buy coral from such a place normally, but out of about 10 there was one orange sun coral that I felt could with tlc recover despite some recession of tissue. So I have been tending this guy for 3 weeks, feeding small amounts of vitaminised shrimp and/or cyclopeeze twice daily.

The tissue round its edges stopped receding within a week and have now recovered completely. Any suggestions as to when I should and how I should reduce its feeding, can I go to feeding him once every other day immeiately or should I reduce the feeding gradually?

Whilst I do 50% water changes twice a week, I am still a bit worried about the load this intensive feeding program is putting on my tank.

[Andy]

all suns like to be fed, mine gorge themselves. they will recover as 80% of their nutrients is non-photosynthetic based

use cyclopleeze to get them in the feeding response but dont rely on it as a food, feed mysis, brine and other meaty foods. I had succes with the new era marine pellets. get a small free tester pack and see if yours like them.

[Sanghy]

I had succes with the new era marine pellets. get a small free tester pack and see if yours like them.

Wish I could, I only have cyclopeeze because a friend brought it over from UK for me.

Any of the sponsors prepared to mail order to Indonesia :whistling:

[BOXING SHRIMP]

Let me get this right you say you do 50% water changes twice a week
so you change all your tanks volume in one single week:eek:
surely that aint right fella??? or have i missed something???
atb rich...:)

[Wombat]

I had succes with the new era marine pellets. get a small free tester pack and see if yours like them.

I'd second that i found them brilliant for sun corals and zooanthids too, but I can't get them in the states I have to mail order them from the UK

[mikegreen]

Boxing Shrimp - check out Sanghy's "I'm New" post - water changes straight from South China Sea - can't get much better than that
Mike

[Sanghy]

Boxing Shrimp - check out Sanghy's "I'm New" post - water changes straight from South China Sea - can't get much better than that
Mike

Sorry I had forgotten about this post, mike is right I get my water straight off the reefs in the south china sea, wish I had a pipeline so I could pump the water through 24/7 :D

[mikegreen]

Hi Sanghy - how's the tubastrea doing?
Mike

[Sanghy]

It's fine, all tissue thathad receded has grown back nicely except for one tiny area with a little hair algae and I can't find any suitable crabs anywhere:(

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2007Q2/DSC_005605250001a.JPG

[benb]

You guys are sooo lucky. My SC doesn't seem to be recovering. It hasn't grown any tissue back since I got it, 2 months or more ago. :(

These new era pellets, they any good compared to Cyclopeeze mixed with Mysis?

Is it worth ordering some?

[Sanghy]

Sorry Ibex I can't help you, I've been feeding this guy blended seafood mixed with a liquid vitamin supplement for babies, just used cyclopeeze to trigger the feeding response.

Im afarid I can't get hold of prepared foods here like new era pellets only got the cyclopeeze cos a freind brought it over from uk.

[benb]

Ok, no problem. Thanks for your time, hope all is well. :)

Have I seen you over on FK before? I'm sure I recognise that user....

[Sanghy]

Yes Ibex I am on FK its a fair cop :laugh: , but since they only get 1 or 2 posts a day I don't go there much now.

[damianandrew]

wheres evilervin when you need him?
try pm him he knows all about sun corals

[dendro982RC]

I'm late, but had a recovery of the sun coral with the usual care - feeding twice a week, after initial single container feeding (for making it open for a feeding).
The food is frozen mysis, larger pink ocean plankton, finely chopped krill, shrimp, fish. At least a couple of mysis per big polyp.
Cyclop eeze makes them open, but is not a main bulk of the food.
http://thumb1.webshots.net/t/64/564/1/46/28/2713146280081040121kcfAEj_th.jpg (http://pets.webshots.com/photo/2713146280081040121kcfAEj) restored to http://thumb1.webshots.net/t/58/658/3/17/78/2788317780081040121vwikqy_th.jpg (http://pets.webshots.com/photo/2788317780081040121vwikqy) in 2.5 months.
HTH

[Qckwzrd]

does any additives help suncoral build skeleton back or just feeding?

[dendro982RC]

Only the common tissue of the colony, coenosarc, is growing back. New polyps are budding and growing own skeleton.

No additives, but I'm doing weekly 15-20% water changes, sometimes with different salts (IO mainly and Red Sea), rarely adjusting Mg and Ca in newly prepared water.

Only feeding, daily or every other day. Sometimes (rarely) once a week, when tank water has problems.

This one is losing accumulated "fat" faster, than the pale pink-orange tubastrea (T. faulkneri?), so smaller doses, given more frequently, worked better. It prefers a little bit more flow, and the whole food (frozen Ocean Plankton, pink, larger than mysis, and mysis) at the beginning, and later - as an addition to the chopped seafood.

I also have the black T. diaphana with receding tissue on recovery, but too early to say - in a couple of months results could be visible.

Qckwzrd, how your suns are doing?

[Wombat]

You guys are sooo lucky. My SC doesn't seem to be recovering. It hasn't grown any tissue back since I got it, 2 months or more ago. :(

These new era pellets, they any good compared to Cyclopeeze mixed with Mysis?

Is it worth ordering some?

Ask for a sample pack from them

[benb]

Got my Sample Pack, but I forgot I had them until this thread popped back up lol

I will give them ago.

I have had no re-growth since I got the Sun Coral in the bad state it was in. Thats no growth on the coenosarc.

Had good polyp growth though :D

[dendro982RC]

ibex_57:

If I may suggest, here is what you can try (either could be risky or labor intensive, but could help with pressure on the system):

1. Feed once in two days, equivalent of 3-4 mysis per mouth, frozen Ocean Planton (not Reef plankton) or Krill from LFS(the whole organisms), add finely cut or grated frozen seafood, different kinds. Only mysys could be insufficient, because it could be of FW origin. Cyclop-eeze didn't give growth for my suns.

Place coral in slightly higher flow.

2. To reduce pollution of the system, make Lunar Lander (http://reefrancher.com/index.php?tag=diy), unconsumed juice can be pulled out by big syringe or siphon, maybe. Didn't tried myself, but looks reasonable.

3. Another way to reduce bioload on the tank, is removing sun coral to pico tank (CN$6 in LFS, small acrylic bowfront, shallow and wide), add smallest power filter and 25-50W shortest submersible heater. Feed there, allowing food circulate for 1 hr or less, moved by powerheal and manually. Change water 90-100% i(half, add new water, again remove half, add again and so on). Insert piece of the filter floss roll in power filter, change daily.
Water change after each feeding - from existing tank. Tank will have additional water changes, that will help it to recover, pico will have aged water with microorganisms.
Labor intensive. I lasted for 4 months, then stopped. It was enough.

4. Another way: add or improve skimmer (Rio Nano hang-on works well for nanos, CN$33) and use 250 micron filter media bag (filter floss bag, micron sock - whatever) to catch the floating pieces of uneaten food. Skimmer removes part of the dissolved organics. Watch phosphates - I'm using phosphate remover.

5. I can see in your tank thread familiar signs of particulates, settling in the tank. Don't beat me for unasked advice, but either increasing flow to have them suspended, or increased pulling of water through filtration may help.

For red slime (and my suns don't like it) could be used ChemiClean (if you don't have filter feeding cucumbers) - it will help with sediment on rock, if continue - UltraLife Red Slime Remover. These are US products, but you have equivalents - oxidizing and erithromicyn based. I recently used both in different tanks and like the results.

6. Again, unasked advice - hate them myself, no hard feelings: place a piece of rock under the sun, the flesh of polyps shouldn't be in the sand/gravel.

It's up to you, but at least there are some options left :D
Good luck!

[benb]

Yeah, thinking of a bigger skimmer, not sure what I can go for though, will do some research :)

I will see what my LFS has in, would chopped cockels be ok to feed? If they were small enough.

The Sun Coral will be placed on a piece of rock if I can find one suitable ;)

I'll run Phos remover, if the phos is high.

I don't think the Pico option is suitable tbh, although, I like the thought of a 5 gall pico in my bedroom, for just Sun Corals and a Goby of some kind.....now thats tempting! How much would a small set up, with a light, filter, skimmer, heater cost do you think? Can't be that much surely.

Doesn't even have to have a stand, can go on my chest in my room ;)

Is this the skimmer? Here? (http://cgi.ebay.com/Taam-Rio-Nano-Protein-Skimmer-110-GPH_W0QQitemZ320253509315QQcmdZViewItem)

Thanks for the reply Dendro

Ben

[dendro982RC]

Chopped cockels: try more variety, any food can be cut in small pieces, or grated, when it is frozen and hard. The easy way to feed is using the small frozen shrimp from LFS, but not only mysis all the time, and wash it in plastic strainer before feeding, helps with water quality. More difficult, but cheaper way - use raw grocery seafood, without preservatives, shrimp, salmon, haddock, mussels, baby cuttlefish or octopus. links to illustrated tutorials (http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=coral+food+recipe&btnG=Google+Search&meta=) how to make it.

Yes, this is Taam Rio Nano skimmer, it is cheap, resumes skimming quite soon after adding frozen food, but: it is not for bedroom. First month mine was intolerably loud, then just louder, than others. Main noise is coming from resonating transparent collection cup, it acts lke a drum. May be some vinyl or rubber wrap, or silicone on it - to absorb vibration - helps. 2-3 skimmers could be put on the same tank.

5g tank: the point of pico was in 100% water changes, it will be too expensive for 5g, unless you will be using Lunar lander to prevent pollution.

Cost of 5g: my 6g NanoCube with lights, filter and pump cost me US$68 plus shipping on EBay. Love it.
Less eye pleasing option is $10 5g rectangular tank, light likely $40 (don't know, I'm using desktop lamp), $25 submersible heater, skimmer still Taam Rio Nano.
Sorry, but I know only US market. You likely should have a similar choice.

[benb]

Mum says we have an old Clearseal tank in the loft, IIRC its about 10Gal, and will be perfect!

The Coralife lights I'm looking at, will fit with the support legs hopefully, so all should be well :)

I can run the skimmer, lights, and a powerhead with ease I reckon :)