Help needed...half colony closed and extended...

[ReefKeeperNick]

Hey guys,

First of all my tank is a Fluval Evo 13.5.

I recently introduced a small colony of Zoas to the tank...sadly I'm not seeing half of them open up at all and they seem to be extended. No visible pests I can see (though I did have one of my blue legged Hermits take a stroll across the colony a few days ago...)

I'm not sure of the Zoa variety though I believe it is a mixed colony.

Had a full range water test at my LFS yesterday:

Alk 149
PH 7.8
Phos 0
Calcium 403
Mg 1070
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0.1
Nitrate 16

I've been advised to raise my Magnesium to at least 1300 as it seems that my mushrooms are using it fast. Could this be the issue with the Zoas?

I'm running 2 Kessil A80 Tuna Blue above the tank so lighting is more than adequate (possibly too much?). All my other corals and fish are happy.

Any help appreciated and pics of the tank attached!

 

[Eric Cohen]

Hey guys,

First of all my tank is a Fluval Evo 13.5.

I recently introduced a small colony of Zoas to the tank...sadly I'm not seeing half of them open up at all and they seem to be extended. No visible pests I can see (though I did have one of my blue legged Hermits take a stroll across the colony a few days ago...)

I'm not sure of the Zoa variety though I believe it is a mixed colony.

Had a full range water test at my LFS yesterday:

Alk 149
PH 7.8
Phos 0
Calcium 403
Mg 1070
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0.1
Nitrate 16

I've been advised to raise my Magnesium to at least 1300 as it seems that my mushrooms are using it fast. Could this be the issue with the Zoas?

I'm running 2 Kessil A80 Tuna Blue above the tank so lighting is more than adequate (possibly too much?). All my other corals and fish are happy.

Any help appreciated and pics of the tank attached!

Tank looks really good! This is pretty common and I would just suggest some good flow and introduce some food into the tank to get some feeding response. These rocks can also be prone to having sponge within the polyps that die off and cause some nuisance.....so a good flow on them for the first week or two really helps. I like to blast them with a powerhead to get any decay off the rock....do that in a bucket of saltwater to avoid polluting your tank......should be ok.

 

[ReefKeeperNick]

Tank looks really good! This is pretty common and I would just suggest some good flow and introduce some food into the tank to get some feeding response. These rocks can also be prone to having sponge within the polyps that die off and cause some nuisance.....so a good flow on them for the first week or two really helps. I like to blast them with a powerhead to get any decay off the rock....do that in a bucket of saltwater to avoid polluting your tank......should be ok.

Thanks for the reply!

Do you think their being stretched but still completely closed is strange?

 

[shakacuz]

Do you think their being stretched but still completely closed is strange?

Zoa's do randomly close. From what I've noticed is they do this when they're growing out(as in, new polyps). check for new growth? perhaps something is irritating them between the polyps as well, so taking a turkey baster or a powerhead as mentioned to blow detritus off.

 

[Eric Cohen]

Zoa's do randomly close. From what I've noticed is they do this when they're growing out(as in, new polyps). check for new growth? perhaps something is irritating them between the polyps as well, so taking a turkey baster or a powerhead as mentioned to blow detritus off.

ShakaCuz.....ShakaCuz......I like that! I've used Hydrogen peroxide dips on zoa rocks before with great success......African zoa are the worst for being infested with sponge. Shallow Water collection and high surge is perfect for sponges to grow.....and of course the collectors don't do sheet to help.