gonipora coral won’t open fully

[LuckyReefer]

i’ve had this pink goni for some time now and haven’t been able to enjoy it for some reason it just persist to not come out fully no matter where i put it and i understand they’re finicky corals but still i think my parameters are exceptionally well along with my other corals looking perfectly fine except my duncan, it has its ups and downs as well so im lost.

phosphates: 0.09
nitrates 0.4
magnesium 1310
calcium: always reads 600, could be higher and i don’t know why. been like this for about a month now
salinity: 1.024
temp: 78

tanks been up for 6 months i dont dose any sort of extra nutrients other than trace elements after a water change.

i run both gfo/carbon in a reactor to keep nutrients down

tanks a 35 cube, tank mates: mandrian goby, bullet hole clown, midas blenny, 2 green chromis and a six line wrasse

CUC: 10 nassirus snails, 5 trochus snails, mix of astria and turbo snails, 2 tiger conchs, 5-10 hermits

i’m against using hermit crabs as they’re just annoying asf always crawling on corals and causing them to close, for a while i didn’t have any as they were in my frag tank but they started dying off so i threw them back in my DT and still had an issue with the goni coral

 

[ChrisPPolys]

i’ve had this pink goni for some time now and haven’t been able to enjoy it for some reason it just persist to not come out fully no matter where i put it and i understand they’re finicky corals but still i think my parameters are exceptionally well along with my other corals looking perfectly fine except my duncan, it has its ups and downs as well so im lost.

phosphates: 0.09
nitrates 0.4
magnesium 1310
calcium: always reads 600, could be higher and i don’t know why. been like this for about a month now
salinity: 1.024
temp: 78

tanks been up for 6 months i dont dose any sort of extra nutrients other than trace elements after a water change.

i run both gfo/carbon in a reactor to keep nutrients down

tanks a 35 cube, tank mates: mandrian goby, bullet hole clown, midas blenny, 2 green chromis and a six line wrasse

CUC: 10 nassirus snails, 5 trochus snails, mix of astria and turbo snails, 2 tiger conchs, 5-10 hermits

i’m against using hermit crabs as they’re just annoying asf always crawling on corals and causing them to close, for a while i didn’t have any as they were in my frag tank but they started dying off so i threw them back in my DT and still had an issue with the goni coral

I’m new to goniapora myself..however I have been told they need to be fed. Depending on the source, some say they’re non photosynthetic corals and require food. Others will say they’re photosynthetic but still require food.

Hopefully someone with more experience can chime in here.

 

[JaaxReef]

How long have you had it? I tend to find Gonis to be a bit like acropora where they like a very biologically mature system. At least a year old, so your tank is still young. Not sure why this is other than stability and perhaps even some tiny bacterial food availability, but it’s just been my experience they like a very mature system. I keep a few gonis that are doing well in my 4 year old tank.

A couple general comments on water parameters: your nitrates seem low. Where is your alk at? Didn’t mention it and it is probably one of the most important parameters to test often and keep very stable.

Some Goniopora are tricky and can be hard to find just the right spot for them to thrive. Give it time and stay the course with stability.

 

[Pistondog]

Gonis can be tricky, the red ora ones seem easiest.
Dosing some trace elements especially manganese daily perked mine up.
Id also get him off the sand, even a 1/2".

 

[lil sumpin]

Cal at 600 seems pretty high. What's your alk? I was under the impression goniopora (and duncan) prefer some nutrients in the water, mine seem to enjoy

 

[vandy]

Could be one of many things:
1. Think you need to lower your calc to more natural sea water levels. ~420ppm.
2. Your salinity is a little low. Raise your salinity up as well to 1.026.
3. My gonis do best at 1500 magnesium. You could also try this.
4. Try upping your nitrates. I keep mine at ~5ppm but anything under 10ppm is good.

Also with the guy above me. whats your alk?

 

[Dipi]

Hello! I heard multiple times that gonis can go sideways when the tank is lacking manganese. Hopefully, someone more experienced can confirm this, but I think it is worth to investigate

 

[Roatan Reef]

6 Months is too young for a Goni, they can be finicky, trust me, I've tried 2...1 at 6 mos, 1 at 1 year mark....2nd one lasted 4 mos, then....never opened fully, it didn't die, but it was not the same.

I am currently trying a small Silver Surfer Goni at the 2.4 year mark...it's doing OK, but I'm gonna move it soon, as it's getting too much flow.