Catalaphyllia Chilled 11/1/11
Good morning all.
<Good morrow Beth!>
I have a question regarding the recovery of Catalaphyllia after exposure to cold water. We had a lovely October snow storm and the power went out in my house while I was at my mothers wedding. The set up is a 125 mixed reef that has been running for 6 or 7 years. The water temperature was down to 69 degrees Fahrenheit when I got home and started the generator. It took 24 hours to get the tank back up to 74 which is where I usually keep it (I realize it is a rather abrupt change but so was the drop in temp).
All corals appear to have recovered except the 2.5 year old elegance. The poor thing has shriveled up and although the tentacles and feeding mouths are visible and the color is good, it is neither expanding nor feeding.
Shall I just leave it be and pray?
<Yes I would>
If there is no sign of recovery, should I remove it?
<Patience here>
I know some of the more toxic species have a tendency to decline then rapidly melt down, poisoning the tank in the process.
Parameters:
Average Temp 74 f
Spec Gravity 1.024
Nitrate 20ppm (ranges from 10-40 tank is heavily fed)
Calcium 400
Lighting LED's (Elegance is not directly under lighting but rather in front. Placement has always been buried in the sand bed as is natural)
<Yes>
Water changes 30 gallons every 2 to 3 weeks
Feeding 2X a day making sure LPS get their own small bits (rather than a large feeding every 2 or 3 days the LPS get whatever the fish get in smaller, more frequent intervals. I always thought it would be closer to their natural habits)
I will not include stock unless requested (too much). Suffice to say that the Catalaphyllia has thrived for over 2 years and shown growth to the skeleton.
Fingers crossed for a positive response.
Beth
<Good. My experience has been that this genus/species is often slow/er to recover from such environmental insults... As long as it is not outright decomposing, I'd leave it be... where it is... and offer some food every few days. Cheers! Bob Fenner>
Re: Catalaphyllia Chilled 11/4/11
Thank you Bob for your council of patience. The coral is expanded to about 75% of its previous size and finally accepting food again.
<Ahh!>
I am sure that by the end of the weekend it will show no signs of last week's stress. And to think I considered disposal.
<Well, I am an eternal "never say never" type re livestock... HAVE witnessed so MANY times when what was apparently gone... resurrected itself ala the Phoenix. Cheers, BobF>
Beth B

I'm afraid that I've damaged my Elegance Coral 3/12/09 Caryophylliidae/Health <Hello Karen> I came home from work this afternoon and found my Elegance Coral somewhat shriveled, then swollen. When the tissue receded a bit, I saw what appeared to be a very tiny (approx ¼ inch or smaller) Cerith Snail attached to the tissue. I assumed (yes, I know what that makes me) that the snail was bothering the coral, hence the swelling and receding. I tried to blow the snail off with a turkey baster, and when it would not budge, I picked up the coral and attempted to knock it off with my finger. When it still refused to move, I pulled on the end, and to my absolute amazement, a large (well over an inch long and approx ½ inch in diameter) came out. I did not see a live snail in the shell, so I'm again assuming that the poor coral was having a snack and I interrupted. I've not seen anything about the Elegance Corals eating snails, although I know they eat meaty foods. Is there anything in particular that I should do at this point, and is it likely that I've damaged the coral beyond recovery? It's now very closed and unhappy looking. <This coral has very sensitive tissue and I'm guessing some damage occurred. Only time will tell here, but I'd say chances for recovery are good. May want to read here, related articles/FAQ's. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/elegance.htm > Thanks so much for your help. <You're welcome. James (Salty Dog)> Karen

Re: Elegance Acting Funny --avalanche! 11/3/07 I have big problems this morning guys!!!! One of my monster Turbos dislodged a piece of live rock in my tank, and it fell on to the corner of my elegance. It may have been laying on her for hours! <eek!> The skeleton is not cracked, but the coral has receded. Can/Should I do an iodine dip? What is the best way to do it? <I hope Bob will correct me if I'm wrong, but I wouldn't do an iodine dip. This might just stress the coral out at this point. If anything, I'd increase the water flow a little around the coral. Definitely give it some extra TLC (maybe some extra food). If it's otherwise healthy, it should heal in time.> HELP!!! <I wish we could help more. :( Good luck, Sara>
Re: Elegance Acting Funny 11/3/07 It is receding more today. It's just the right side of the coral. Is there any way to cure it? <Have you "cleaned" the wound with a turkey baster? I wish I could tell you there's something more you could do, but I doubt it. :-( I'll send this over to Bob to see if he has any other ideas... Sara M.>

Bloated Puffy Elegance Body Hi Bob, <Anthony Calfo in your service> Greetings from Malaysia. <and a kind welcome to you from America, fellow reef enthusiast!> Right I've ran through your FAQ about Elegance Coral and could not find any answer to my problem. My tank's condition is perfect for Elegance as per your articles on how one should keep them and the tank condition needed for it to survive. Here's the wee problem. The gorgeous green with pink tip fella did fine for the first 2 weeks... opened up proudly displaying its full splendour of vibrant colour. Then I think my bird wrasse knocked it down to the substrate accidentally one day (the Elegance's placed in mid section horizontally on a rock). <we may have our first problem here, my friend. Elegance coral are collected as free-living specimens (and have a conical skeleton) or as sessile fixed denizens (wall shaped skeletons sawn off of the reef proper). Most Elegance are collected as free-living individuals and should never be placed on rock. They will die in time from abraded tissue (polyps cycles) for having been placed on the rockwork. Even if you have a specimen that was collected from rock, it can be fatal for any LPS to take a fall and sustain torn tissue.> I got home from work and it was on the bottom of the tank between other rocks in 45 degrees positioning. Still it's opened fully with extended tentacles. Put it back to its original location. No signs of damage. Two days gone by and I noticed at the bottom of its tentacles, there're white stringy things coming out from its meat (is that how you call it?) and they're like attached to the meat itself. <yes... mesenterial filaments. Stress induced. Not a good sign, but not fatal either. Very noxious to other corals though> I know they are the inner parts of the coral that came out. Only parts of the coral has this clumps of white stringy things at the base of the tentacles. The rest opens up as normal. Following day, it started to close up and the stringy things are still there. This time with kind of like jelly thing sticking around the stringy clumps. I think it could be detritus from the water that got stuck to the sticky slimy white stringy things. <yes... or bacteria and the beginnings of a necrotic infection. Try to maintain good strong random turbulent water flow> Next day it opened up again... same condition with white slimy stringy things and jelly like stuff around these clumps. This time the coral opens up really large... it's like an inflated puffy balloon... really huge, without the tentacles extending. As day goes by, it shrinks and bloated over and over again in a days cycle. Tissue is not receding, just bloated with un-extended, "un-filled" tentacles, <yes...defensive, not feeding strategy> with clumps of white stringy things at the base of some tentacles, and jelly like things around it. Phew! there you go. That's the problem. Any idea what's wrong with this fella? <just trying to heal> Its body is so bloated and puffy now as I'm typing this. Looks like a big huge obese man with tiny short little very thin arms and legs. <you mean it looks like I will look in another 15 years of eating fatty foods?> Thanks a mill...Cheers...Steve <best regards, Anthony>
Re: Bloated Puffy Elegance Body Hi Anthony, Thanks a mill for the explanation on my wee Elegance Coral problem. <you are quite welcome my friend> Am I right to say I should just put it down to the tank's bed and let it sit there and wait for it to heal (hopefully)? <Yes... exactly correct. Although there is no guarantee of recovery, it is of far greater risk to leave it upon the rockwork precariously/unnaturally. Furthermore... free-living (sand dwelling) elegance are believed to benefit if not need the micronutrients available in limited amounts near the surface of the sand bed> BTW my heart aches looking at this fella all bloated up and can't do anything about it to help. If you or your team member wish to dive in Malaysia someday, do let me know. I'll be most happy to be your guide and all. <what a wonderful offer... we thank you very kindly and hope to have the pleasure one day soon. In fact, we will be attending the Aquarama conference in Singapore next year (May/June) which is only a hop away. Perhaps then :) ><<Yes... Pete and I were in Pulau Redang last year... and there are hundreds if not thousands more places to dive in Malaysia... are you near any of the big-name resorts? Bob Fenner>> That's the least I can do since you guys have been great putting up this advise service to everyone on this planet. <appreciated but not necessary... in shared admiration of the sea we all are (insert Yoda voice HERE)> But make sure you don't wait until you look like my elegance and come diving alright : ) <Ha! You've heard how well my family cooks! <G>> Best regards from the other side of the world, Steve <and soon to be seeing it for ourselves... best regards, Anthony>