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Toadstool Leather disease, possible predation I have a toadstool leather that is about 3 years old. Over the past couple of weeks I have noticed a hole forming in the cap. The hole is slightly smaller than a dime and is currently about 1.5" deep. When it first began it looked like detritus was sitting on the cap. I blew it off, but a day or so later it was back. It does not appear to be spreading, just getting deeper. I have not noticed anything in the hole that would be eating it. I am about to get in there and cut the flesh around the hole out to see if that takes care of it. But found your site and wanted to see what you suggest Thanks, Steve <I suggest close/r observation... I fully suspect you have a predator at play here... possibly just a large Polychaete (bristle) worm... Do use a flashlight to peek in at night... consider netting, trapping out this animal... possibly isolating the soft coral, the eventuality of maybe needing to excise the damaged portion, possibly fragmenting it entirely. Bob Fenner>
Leather coral with a limp stalk Crew, < Blundell tonight. > I recently purchased a leather coral from LiveAquaria.com. It looks good and actually larger than I anticipated. I had a smaller one several years ago, about half the size of this one. The problem is, the coral doesn't seem to be standing up very well. I attached the piece of rock the coral is on to a piece of rock in my aquarium with epoxy, but the "stalk" of the leather coral doesn't seem very rigid. It like its wilted or something. The polyps are about halfway extended on day two, so I think the coral is OK. If I remember right, the first one I had took about four days to "open" this much. My concern is the "wilted" stalk. Will it firm up over time? < Yes, this is very common. I'd say it will perk up in a couple weeks. > What's going on? < Just stress. It is common and I wouldn't worry about it yet. > I successfully propagated the first one by cutting pieces of the cap and attaching them elsewhere in the tank. I was wondering if the stalk on this one is damaged (it doesn't appear physically damaged, just limp), what would happen if I cut the cap from the stalk to shorten the stalk, say by half, so it can more effectively support the cap. < I wouldn't do this. I wouldn't want to cut and frag a stressed coral. I think you are better to give it time and frag in in a few months. > Will the whole thing die, the stalk without cap die, the cap with stalk die, or the capless stalk regrow a cap and the shot stalked cap attach successfully somewhere else. < They are amazingly durable. The stalk will grow a new cap, and the cap will grow a new stalk. > I hope that's not confusing. < Here is an idea. Well first, you can wait a week and see what happens. Or, try stacking up a couple rocks around the coral to help hold it up. Then see if these "crutches" help it out. You can just move the rocks away in a few days. I've had good success doing this. > Thanks, John Jordan < Blundell >
Funky Finger Leather Problem? Love your site, and your advice. Please tell me if my green Finger Leather needs help, or if this will go away by itself. I have recently purchased this coral about 2 weeks ago. The polyps are coming out and it is looking healthy, but there is a brown scab at a portion of the base. At other locations around the base there are also some flaky scabs of the same color, but they seem to have come off and drifted away. This one spot however is larger and thicker and does not appear to be flaking away. Do I need to do an iodine bath with Tech D, or just leave it alone. I suspect the areas in question were touched with fingers. Thanks, Andrea <Well, Andrea, it's never a great idea to disturb a coral if it's doing well. However, you probably want to keep an eye on these "scabs". At some point, you'll have to assess whether or not they are increasing in numbers, or if the coral seems to be declining. If it does, then the iodine dip may not be a bad idea. These are pretty tough corals, but they occasionally need some help from the aquarist. Hope this helps. Regards, Scott F.> Coral Calamity! WetWeb crew, <Hi there! Scott F. here today!> We recently purchased a Leather Glove soft coral for our salt water tank. It has been drooping since it was put in the tank and the other day it emitted something that looked like smoke. Since then the Toadstool we have appeared to get a blister, that was red and bubbled up. <Yuck. Not good. This coral is apparently unhappy, and is releasing some substances which are not making it's neighbors happy, either!> The aquarium we purchased it from said it was a form of algae and to simply brush it off. When we brushed it off, the Toadstool went with it leaving a hole in the toadstool. <Sounds like large parts of the coral are already necrotic, and your brushing removed a lot of dead tissue. Best to cut out all or most of the necrotic tissue on the coral so that the remaining live portion has it's best shot at survival. A sharp razor blade makes this work easy. These corals can survive quite a bit of cutting, BTW.> Now the frogspawn we have has filmed over with a white web like layer, and tonight our brain coral has a small white spot near the edge and what appear to be bumps throughout one half. <Yep- release of allelopathic or other compounds is causing a lot of stress and damage in this tank.> No effect so far on our star polyps or mushrooms, and our crabs and snails seem fine. We do not have any fish yet to worry about. We have tested the pH, ammonia nitrates and nitrite's, and all those levels are fine. The temperature of the tank is at 79 and has stayed right around there since this began. We used Nutra sea water to start the tank and occasionally add fresh water to keep the water level up. The only other additives we use are reef buffer and reef iodine. HELP!! <Well, the first order of business is to get the sick and dying coral out of the tank and in a clean environment. Carefully excise the damaged tissue from the corals, and keep them in a situation with decent water movement during the healing process. By all means, conduct some good sized water changes, using high quality source water. Use of aggressive protein skimming and activated carbon will help remove many of the organic and other substances in the water that are degrading water quality. Get on a regular water change schedule here, and keep at it! Remember to quarantine all new animals (yep- even corals!) before placing them in your display tank, and make sure that they are kept far enough apart to avoid "burning" each other. On the other hand, soft corals do release many noxious compounds that can stifle their neighbor's growth. Be sure to use the aforementioned chemical filtration on a regular basis, to help remove some of the nasty substances. Also, arm yourself with a good book on these animals, such as Eric Borneman's "Aquarium Corals" and/or Anthony Calfo's "Book of Coral Propagation", both of which cover husbandry and disease treatment of corals in much greater depth than we can cover here. Take the first steps outlined here, and observe the corals closely. Hang in there! Regards, Scott F.> Yellow Fiji Leather Hey guys <Hey, Mike G here> I set up a 20 gal. reef system about a year ago. I've added corals slowly that include orange & greenish pink Ricordea Yumas, red Florida Ricordea, mint green finger, pulsing xenia, anthelia, Sinularia, some green star polyps and a cabbage leather. I had a toadstool leather in my tank and it stayed in constant shedding mode. I moved it to my wife's 3 month old reef tank , it shed once, turned beautiful reddish brown polyped out and has been this way since. <It was likely stressed in your other tank. Possibly chemical warfare was culprit.> Our water quality is the same .25 Amm., 0 nitrate, 0 nitrite, 0 phos. <You should not be registering any measurable ammonia: that is, it should be at 0 and no higher.> Both tanks temps are 75-78 deg &1.025 sal and both have Prizm skimmers . Her tank has 130 watts of power compacts, my tank has a 175 watt 10k metal halide & 2 -20 watt actinic. Both have about 30lbs of live rock. <Then perhaps the toadstool liked the low light better than the high light.> O.K those are the specs. now for the Q? 2wks ago I bought a yellow Fiji leather. It was gorgeous for about 2 days (beautifully yellow), then filmed over, turned bluish grey and has been that way since. <Ouch. That does not sound good.> I feed Kent Marine strontium.& Moly, 2.5ml & reef plus vitamin & amino acid supplement, 5ml.twice a wk. Water change about 10% per wk. Every thing in my tank is doing extremely well except this leather. I've moved it around the tank from strong water movement and light to less of each, no change . Any suggestions? AND DON'T TELL ME I SHOULD MOVE THIS CORAL TO MY WIFE'S TANK , THE TOADSTOOL WAS DEVASTATING ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OKAY? <It sounds as if you've tried most of what you can. I would personally suggest moving it to your wife's tank as the other did well there, and see how it did. But, I am detecting that you do not want to do that. Why don't you check out the following links on leathers and see if you can figure out the problem. Oh, and do lower your ammonia It is possible that it is the culprit. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/alcyoniids.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/alcyoniidfaqs.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/alcyonfaq2.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/alcyonfaq3.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/alcyonfaq4.htm > Devil's hand coral I have used your site several times
and always appreciate the feedback. I have had a Devil's Hand in my
tank for about 2 months and it has been doing great, polyps fully
extended. When I first put it in the tank I noticed that there was a
green spot in the middle of the head, but the polyps within the green
spot would extend and they were normally colored. I do have a
question, is it possible that this is a green devil's hand and
that's a natural color coming out? Or is it more like this is a The
green spot has grown and the polyps are not extending within the green
area. What could this be and what should be done? <If it was
mine I would try coral dip and see if that doesn't help.> I have
heard that I can cut off the head and it will grow back, if true, is
that a good solution? <You can frag the coral in any number of ways.
That's something very easy to do but do you want it in pieces or do
you want it as the solid coral? Let me know if I can help you,
MacL> Distressed green finger leather 3/11/05 You are a welcome source of information for us. <thanks kindly, Anthony> We have had only fish only for years. I cannot find this exact problem on WWM. I have a small finger leather that looks wilted and bluish. the LFS calls this one a green finger leather but it looked more blue than green. <increase water flow for starters> When it first came home it actually looked pink with darker polyps. It became encrusted with diatoms then slimed them off. <ah, yes! A sign (diatoms) of inadequate water flow> Since then they have not returned. It gets moderate water flow and is 10" below Compact flour 10000k and blue 50/50 lights. Nitrates are a little high at 10ppm 10% water changes every two weeks. pH 8.0, <yikes! if this is a daytime pH reading, then your pH is dangerous low at night. Do increase it all to 8.3-8.5> temp 78-80F, ammonia 0, nitrite 0.3, dKH 7, <raise ALK too here to 8-12 dKH> calcium 410. Skimming 12 hours daily. 1 Ricordea, yellow polyps, feather duster, coral beauty and a queen conch. <please do sell/trade the queen conch... they need a minimum of 200 gall DSB to survive even a couple of years. Most starve to death. Have you seen how big they get?> 90lbs live rock, 3 inch sand bed. The leather wilts then stands up straight but is much shorter and fatter than when first brought home. Is this normal? <only for short periods of time> If not can you suggest anything to help? Thanks <best of luck. Anthony>
Injured Leather Coral 2/9/05 Today I bought a toadstool from fish store. One large one and one small next to it on one rock. After placing it in the tank I noticed a hole on the smaller crown almost in the middle. Is this something I should worry about? <Of bigger concern is the addition of any new coral, fish, etc right into your tank without quarantine first. High risk of (eventually) adding a parasite, pest, predator or disease to the tank. Please do take the time to read about and apply QT habits (see our archives on this topic)> How could I remove it from rock so I can place in my 30 gal for observation in case of spreading disease. <Moving a stressed coral at this point will only make it worse. And any contamination has already been done> Would I need to reattach it to another rock or will it do it on its own? <None of the above... just good strong water flow where its at and observe to see what may have caused the hole, what makes it worse, or if it simply heals> The hole looks like it goes into the stem. polyps are out and looks good I'm not sure what to do any help would be appreciated Thank you! Andy <Patience for now my friend... best to let this animal sit in place and heal. Anthony>
Soft finger coral I have a soft finger coral, that the LFS gave me. I have had it for about a year and it has grown well. For the last few days it has remained shriveled and not expanded when the lights are on. <Normal> All water parameters are fine and all other corals are doing well also. I have a green star polyp frag near the softy but the GSP is at least 2 inches from touching it. <I'd double, treble this distance> Could there be some chemical warfare going on? <Undoubtedly> Also, the softy has gone from a nice fleshy color to have some what of a green tint to it. Any recommendations or help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Austin <Please read on WWM re these animals, their care, behavior. Maybe starting here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/index.htm The blue typing are links... Bob Fenner> Distressed Leather (Coral)! I have a Toadstool Leather and
have had it about 3 weeks. It opens up nicely and it have a
yellow stalk with a tan-colored cap. Its polyps are yellow in color
also. My problem is that at the very bottom of the stalk there is a
hole about the size of a dime. I poked my finger in it to make sure
there was nothing in there and there was nothing I could feel. The
hole, however, widened. The tissue just sort of dissolved into a cloud.
The part of the stalk that has the hole is this curved bottom part that
is attached to some gravel. Do you think I should cut off the curved
bottom part or do you think there is something eating it. <Hmm..
hard to say without a lot of observation. I'd definitely cut out
the damaged areas. Keep an eye on the coral for a while; if something
is eating the coral, you'd want to identify what it is.> The
only thing that I can possibly think might be munching is a cowry that
I have. I had a bluish sponge growing the skeleton of my torch coral
and the cowry completed ate it all off. The sponge had the same sort of
feel as the leather so I'm wondering if he is doing the damage.
<Definitely a possibility. Consider this Cowry your suspect, but do
run some water tests to confirm that water quality is up to par. There
is most likely a single cause, and your continued close observation
will help zero in on it.> Other than that, I just have some Damsels,
a Firefish and a Tomato Clown. Thanks, Kevin <Well, Kevin- just keep
up the observations, and do consider excising the damaged tissue. With
good conditions, these corals are remarkably resilient and virtually
indestructible! Good luck! Regards, Scott F.> Dyed coral gonna die, sorry to say 12/29/04 Ok Guys, lets play what soft coral is that..... <OK...> It looks a little bit like a contorted Sinularia flexibilis - more compacted though - or a fine finger leather - LOTS of fine fingers and really contorted together. Plus its hot pink - almost fluorescent like a Dendronephthya. <this is a dyed coral... commonly shipped from Indonesia. It will die in days to weeks most likely as it does not feed organismally on anything we can offer it prepared. As such, it cannot be carried nutritionally until its brown Zooxanthellae recover> This specimens about 8 inch across and the same in height and kind of compact oval in shape. Polyps are short too.. I am in Thailand, and getting reliable info outta these aquarists (I use that term loosely) is near impossible. Anyone know it. Its a new one to me.. <very good to see you research this before buying it. Its a shame and a sham that such dyed animals are sold. Deplorable> If you do know it, is it easy to keep and does it have any special requirements with food or lighting. Its been in the store a months as its 5000 baht (about US$100) - a months salary for some people round here. <even more insulting/sad to read/know> It has one dead finger that is brown and seems to be falling off, but overall its unharmed... lots more fingers They are keeping it under bright fluoros. Brett Moloney, Bangkok <continue down the right path as an educated consumer... do not buy this creature and in time the dreadful practice will stop. Read more information here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/dyedcorals.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/dyedanemfaqs.htm best of luck, Anthony> Leather coral problems To the incredible wet web media crew: << Hope you'll settle for me today. >> First off thank you so much for all of the incredible information you give. It has saved me (or more importantly my aquarium inhabitants) many times. I have attached a photo (hopefully you can open it) of something going on with one of my finger leathers (can't find specific ID). Tank perimeters are all good PH 8.2, Ammonia 0, nitrite 0, and nitrate 0. Tank inhabitants are xenia, other soft corals (devils hand & fingers), mated pair True Perculas, six line wrasse, royal Gramma, 1 peppermint shrimp, 1 skunk cleaner shrimp, 10+ blue leg hermit crabs, 3 turbo snails, 8 Nassarius snails, and a derasa clam. The tank is a 55 gallon with 80 lbs of live rock and a 10 gallon sump and skimmer. The tank has been up and running for about 2 years and all has gone great until I saw this thing on the coral. This particular coral has been in the tank for 5 months. Again, thank you so much for all you do, << Hmmm, not sure what to do. I recommend some fragging of larger branches. Also, I may try increasing water flow in that area and adding some iodine to the tank. >> Justin << Blundell >>
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