I have a 120 gallon mixed reef tank That is about 18 months old. I put a gonnipora in about 6 months ago and the polyps will not extend. It was fine at the LFS. It looks more like a short zoa than a gonnipora. It’s alive and spreading on the rock but the polyps just wont come out. All of my other corals are growing like crazy. What are some things that will cause a gonnipora to stay closed?
Gonnipora
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Timfish
Crusty Old Salt
Goniopora can be very difficult depending on which species you have. Some are found in very speific environments and others are very cosmopolitan and therefor adaptable. Best bet is to get maricultured or aquacultured specimens should be failry adaptable and easier to duplicate the conditions they' do well in.
Shufflepig
Active Member
IMO gonis need to be target fed. I’m sure people have success with them not target feeding but I think your chances of success are greatly increased by feeding them.
Amtrack5899
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2 pictures of the goniopower. One with orange filter one without. Pictures of some of my other corals. It’s still early so the pictures are in low light.
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jaganshi066
Valuable Member
I’ve gotten all my goniporas from other reefers and they are all doing well. Are the ones you have wild?
Amtrack5899
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Probably not. But I can’t say for sure. He was fine at the LFS And has been withdrawn ever since I brought him home. He is spreading on the rock so he’s growing not dying , just a little unhappy. It is in the bottom center of the tank . I think I will move him back a little to reduce the light and flow.
I honestly don’t know if he wants more or less light and flow. Initially I was target feeding a gonnipora food but it didnt so I stopped.
I honestly don’t know if he wants more or less light and flow. Initially I was target feeding a gonnipora food but it didnt so I stopped.
jaganshi066
Valuable Member
I think gonis or at least mine likes high flow, and whatever light. What kind of gonis do you have?
jaganshi066
Valuable Member
I never feed mine but they grow well, do you think I should start? They are all in my 30 gallon and seem to be thriving. I do feed my fish heavily thoughI target mine reef roids and now coral candy. They really love the coral candy.
kittenbritches
The Cat's Pajamas
Mine is finicky about extending, and tends to like a moderate, indirect flow. It has been on the sandbed the last couple of weeks and my wrasse has been a brat about chucking sand. Hopefully it gets happy again once I mount it.
Amtrack5899
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I don’t know what kind of Goni it is. Next time I go to the LFS where I got it Ill ask. I have goniopower and reef roads on hand that I can target feed. I did post a picture of it if you can telll by that. It was early morning and the lights were just coming on so the picture isn’t the best. I posted it to show its location and polyp extension.
fachatga
Well-Known Member
I have 2 in my tank. One for 2 months had been extended and amazing every day. Other I’ve had 4 months. Extended on day 1 but barely at all every day since. Tried different places with same result. It’s growing slowly but won’t extend. It is a difficult coral. With varying likes and needs. It’s kind of you’re on your own since any advise we give even if it’s correct for our Goni might not work for yours. Part of why they’re difficult. But good luck to you. It’s not an uncommon issue.
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Goniopora can be a tricky specimen often challenging the most experienced hobbyist.
For a long time Goniopora were considered an impossible coral to keep. There were even discussions online about it being unethical to keep importing them because of their poor survivability. Goniopora are a photosynthetic coral so they derive some of their nutritional requirements from light. This is done through a symbiotic relationship with dinoflagellates called zooxanthellae that live in the flesh of the coral. The dinoflagellates are actually the photosynthetic organism and the Goniopora colony derives nutrients off of the byproducts of the dinoflagellates’ photosynthetic process. Zooxanthellae is usually brown in color and the coral tightly regulates the population living in its flesh. Too little light will cause the coral to turn brown in color.
I would not recommend blasting Goniopora with a lot of light. I don’t think there are a lot of advantages to doing so. If you start to see the coral starting to turn lighter and bleach out, it is likely the result of high lighting intensity. When in doubt, favor lower lighting intensities until it is clear that the coral is demanding more.
One mistake I think some reef keepers make is providing them too much flow. If you have a powerhead blowing right at Goniopora from short range, it may kill off some of the tissue at that point of contact and cause a chain reaction to the rest of the colony.
Goniopora appreciate low to medium flow, but preferably with some randomness to it. That way you will get that gentle waving motion which helps keep the coral clean and brings food past the colony. If you see the tentacles violently thrashing about, that is probably too much flow and it would benefit from being relocated to a more calm section of the tank.
Lack of food is a big issue with these coral and there are two types of food to provide Goniopora. The first is liquid amino acids. In short, they are simple organic compounds that play a major role in building proteins as well as other biological functions at the cellular level. Corals regularly take in available amino acids from the water column so it is easy to provide them with adequate quantities by broadcast feeding an amino acid solution.
The second type of food I like are dry powdered plankton. There are several different types on the market.
The general consensus with these is to keep Phosphate levels around .05 ppm and Nitrate levels between 10-20 ppm. This is a safe zone that not too many people will dispute. If you need a recommendation for care-there you go.
For a long time Goniopora were considered an impossible coral to keep. There were even discussions online about it being unethical to keep importing them because of their poor survivability. Goniopora are a photosynthetic coral so they derive some of their nutritional requirements from light. This is done through a symbiotic relationship with dinoflagellates called zooxanthellae that live in the flesh of the coral. The dinoflagellates are actually the photosynthetic organism and the Goniopora colony derives nutrients off of the byproducts of the dinoflagellates’ photosynthetic process. Zooxanthellae is usually brown in color and the coral tightly regulates the population living in its flesh. Too little light will cause the coral to turn brown in color.
I would not recommend blasting Goniopora with a lot of light. I don’t think there are a lot of advantages to doing so. If you start to see the coral starting to turn lighter and bleach out, it is likely the result of high lighting intensity. When in doubt, favor lower lighting intensities until it is clear that the coral is demanding more.
One mistake I think some reef keepers make is providing them too much flow. If you have a powerhead blowing right at Goniopora from short range, it may kill off some of the tissue at that point of contact and cause a chain reaction to the rest of the colony.
Goniopora appreciate low to medium flow, but preferably with some randomness to it. That way you will get that gentle waving motion which helps keep the coral clean and brings food past the colony. If you see the tentacles violently thrashing about, that is probably too much flow and it would benefit from being relocated to a more calm section of the tank.
Lack of food is a big issue with these coral and there are two types of food to provide Goniopora. The first is liquid amino acids. In short, they are simple organic compounds that play a major role in building proteins as well as other biological functions at the cellular level. Corals regularly take in available amino acids from the water column so it is easy to provide them with adequate quantities by broadcast feeding an amino acid solution.
The second type of food I like are dry powdered plankton. There are several different types on the market.
The general consensus with these is to keep Phosphate levels around .05 ppm and Nitrate levels between 10-20 ppm. This is a safe zone that not too many people will dispute. If you need a recommendation for care-there you go.
Mine appears to eat reef roids and frozen rotifers, likes lower flow with a intermittent surge.
Lights on, flow off. Don’t blast them with food, just let it slowly settle on them, every 3 or 4 days.
Goaway
10K Club member
If yours are doing OK, I don't see a reason to change things. You can try to target feed once a week to see if it helps them grow.
I have 3 out of 4 gonis recovering still from near death. The focus feeding has helped a lot with recovery. 1 is not going to make it.
