Zoa Turning brown

[James M]

Any idea of the cause ?

 

[James M]

Bump

 

[James M]

Bump

 

[James M]

Bump

 

[James M]

Bump

 

[eggwater]

Is your nitrate high? Are they high up in the tank?
It used to happen to my rastas when I first got them but they regained their colors after acclimating to my tank

 

[James M]

Is your nitrate high? Are they high up in the tank?
It used to happen to my rastas when I first got them but they regained their colors after acclimating to my tank

nitrates aren’t high
I’ve had them for 2 months and they are on the sand bed. These are the only zoas Turing brown.

 

[James M]

Bump

 

[DJF]

Are they turning brown and opening or turning brown and not opening? Turning brown and not opening may be algae growing on them bc they haven’t photosynthesized & are becoming weak. browning in an open polyp can be bc exposure to too much light or removing it from a tank too quickly. the pic suggests an unhappy colony with 2 semi- open. If you can remove them I’d maybe do either a quick fresh water dip or a hydrogen peroxide/ salt water dip. The hydrogen peroxide dip kills algae on contact. If you can’t remove the rock you can (and I have) do pinpointed hydrogen peroxide but do so sparingly as too much can mess with your ph. If I’m wrong and that is a 2 polyp colony & some sort of shroom to the left- then that could be the culprit. - def look up hydrogen peroxide dip on forums if you choose to go that direction.

 

[A. grandis]

Lights, most likely.

 

[James M]

3 polyp colony with only 1 head tiring brown. I moved the mushroom and see if it improves

 

[A. grandis]

They could morph too.

 

[DJF]

3 polyp colony with only 1 head tiring brown. I moved the mushroom and see if it improves

Agree that it is probably light or trauma related. I’ve gotten the same discoloration (brown polyp) by pulling out the colony quickly. If you can’t pinpoint a traumatic event that could have browned them out then I’d find a shadier spot. The good news is that they’re open and the brown should go away with time (even if they stay in the same spot they can adapt)