Zoa loosing it's heads

[adamf83]

I got my first Zoa in the middle of March, here is a picture:

Fast forward to today (although it's been getting worse for sometime now) and it looks like this:

It seems to have lost a lot of heads. I've moved it around to give better access to lights and flow, been target feeding twice a week using Red Sea Energy Plus Coral Nutrition (AB+), but nothing seems to be making much of a difference.

My water params are:

Salinity: 1.025
PH: 8.0
Amonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 20
Phosphate: 0.03
Alk: 6
Calc: 468
Mag: 1710

They have been mostly stable over the last few weeks, a few fluctations in Alk, Calc and Mag.

I have a Bi-Colour Darwf Angelfish and I know they can nip at corals, I also have a toadstool that used to extend it's polyps when I first got it and hasn't really extended them a great deal, so I'm wondering if this is a the angel fish is eating my coral thing or a water parameter thing.

Any suggestions on what might be the issue or what I can do (if anything)?

 

[Ewok1]

Probably nipping them away. Do you see any of them dying or melting?

 

[adamf83]

Not sure if they are melting or dying... don’t know what I’m looking for if I’m honest.

 

[Ewok1]

Not sure if they are melting or dying... don’t know what I’m looking for if I’m honest.

Not sure if they are melting or dying... don’t know what I’m looking for if I’m honest.

Def being eaten in my opinion looking at the pictures. Usually if they die they leave goo or something and makes your water go bad but your parameters are good.

 

[SamsReef]

Alk is low and mag is super high. Check how you are dosing these macros but that could easily do it. Can you share how old is the tank, what fishes/inverts you have, how often do you do water changes and how do you Maintain your macros

Sam

 

[adamf83]

I’m dosing Alk when I notice it’s dropped (probably not the way to do it), I need to get a doser. I’m not dosing anything else.

The tank is 17 months old, has 2 clowns, 1 darwf angelfish, 3 regal damsels, 1 firefish, 1 wrasse, 2 peppermint shrimps, 2 cleaner shrimps and some snails.

Water changes are every 3-4 weeks.

 

[JoshO]

Your parameters are quite a bit out I'm being honest, I'll attach a picture of the parameters that @Randy Holmes-Farley recommends. Also peppermints have a tendency to go after some corals

 

[adamf83]

That’s helpful. Thanks. What’s the best way to reduce my mag and Calc? Based on the above, they seems the worst off

 

[Aqua Man]

Do you have any little white starfish? They will eat zoas

 

[adamf83]

Do you have any little white starfish? They will eat zoas

Nope, none of those.

 

[JoshO]

That’s helpful. Thanks. What’s the best way to reduce my mag and Calc? Based on the above, they seems the worst off

The quickest way would be water changes, otherwise just allow it to come down naturally by stopping dosing. Your alk is low so I'd try to raise that slowly though

 

[SamsReef]

Everything has already been written above. One additional suspect is the dwarf angel

So in summary,

1) bring your water chemistry in line
2) remove peppermint and dwarf angle
3) be patient. This colony already looks in a bad shape but hopefully future corals will be fine

Good luck.

Sam

 

[Angelwolf21203]

I had a butterfly who did a lot of damage to my zoas, and immediately after getting him out of the tank, my coral recovered and is back to its original splendor and is spreading. I would really recommend getting that angel out of there, ASAP!

 

[Jvalle]

Def being eaten in my opinion looking at the pictures. Usually if they die they leave goo or something and makes your water go bad but your parameters are good.

Yes looks like being eaten otherwise u would see slimy substance like a floating stringy web coming from them or the loose size. I see the stems so it’s probably getting nipped at the zoa head and leaving the stem. Pay attention to the angel they will do this. Thx

 

[Olemiss]

I also have the same problem with my Zoe. Finally saw my dwarf angel nipping at it the other day after feeding him.