Any tricks

[clowns101]

Hey guys-
I recently bought a deep RPE,it was fully red,and totaly awesome!After 3 weeks of being in my tank,it has morphed into a PE of some sort with a green base and blue/green splotches all over it.

I want to have a RPE,not a whatever it has morphed into,so what is the trick into keeping the color,is there even a trick?What causes them to change color like that?

Thanks for you help,
Austin

 

[Wy Renegade]

Austin, post up a picture if you can. Zoas morph as a result of differences in lighting as well as water parameters. The key to keeping a zoa looking similar to what it was when you aquired it is to match lighting (and color spectrum), flow and water chemistry as closely as possible.

 

[Captain Nemo]

+ 1 for the pics, it may have something to do with lighting or the type of salt you are mixing with, who knows. Good luck though! Let us know how things work out.

 

[clowns101]

Ill try to get a picture,I dont have the macro lens yet(pre ordered)and I havent ordered extension tubes yet.

I dont even know what type of lighting the guy I got them from runs anymore,I dont talk to him,and I never will again.

 

[clowns101]

Heres best piture I can get,notice the babies come in fully red with no green on their mouth,but as they age,they turn into the bigger polyps.

 

[Luisra]

Do you want them to look like this?

 

[clowns101]

Yes,thats what they looked like when I got them,haha!

 

[Wy Renegade]

I would say maybe you bleached them out with too much light. Did you light acclimate them?

 

[clowns101]

Yup,I did.I placed them on the very bottom of the tank way off to the side of where the light directly hits every thing,and I moved it up a little every couple days or so,It turned into this now.

 

[akabryanhall]

You need to keep them on the bottom. Acclimating them like that only gets them used to more light. If higher light turns them that color it doesn't matter how slowly you move them up, they will turn eventually.

 

[clowns101]

I see,I have them like 24 inches away from a 400 w MH,how far they need to be away?

 

[Wy Renegade]

I'd go back to the bottom in the shade, and go from there again.

 

[clowns101]

I see,they are only on the crate for pics,ill moved them down and see what happens,if anything,haha!

Thanks

 

[Captain Nemo]

Hopefully they will get back to normal, good luck Austin and keep them lower..... Lol

 

[clowns101]

haha,this is a first for me,arent they called acid trips or somthing like that when they are this color?

I cant keep up with the PE's at all anymore,I learned a new one today already VPE,haha!