Scler Dis F12

FAQs about Stony Coral Health/Disease/Pests 12

The most difficult question. Coral hlth. issues; some poss. influences, corrections 12/13/13
Hello again Mr. F.
<Andrei>
how are you? I hope all is fine with you .
I have a very important question: what is wrong with my system?
Let me explain: my 250 gallon display was set-up 1 year ago. 220 cm long, 70 cm wide and 70 cm high. Sump, AquaMedic aCone 3.0 skimmer rated to 3000 litres, biopellets reactor, antiphos reactor, active carbon reactor running 24h. Ozone , full line apex Neptune system computer with the following readings: ORP 350-390, pH 7.9-8.1 , temp 25.5-26.5 and salinity 34.5-35.0.
Calcium reactor, kH 7.2-8.0 , Ca 420-450, Mg 1280-1300.
History: maybe you remember all my inquiries about crypt and fish disease after my initial ordeal
<A good deal; yes>
With all my fishes dying in the first month because of crypt and Oodinium, I have spent hundreds of hours reading and learning. I now have Coral magazine subscription ( maybe one of the very few in Romania ) and dozens of books all read. About fishes , I now have all the fishes I restarted the system with, P. Hepatus, Chelmon rostratus, A. Japonicus, pair or mandarins, Z. Xanthurus, Naso lituratus, P. Imperator ( juv. ) all 10 months now in the system and a beautiful Z. Cornutus six months now in the tank, all doing very good. So lesson learned there. ( I have 3. Quarantine tanks , I always perform fw dips with Methylene blue etc )
<Good>
4-5 months ago I started introducing SPS corals. I always knew I wanted a SPS dominated tank with these beautiful fishes I already have ( only one P. Diacanthus is missing but I will get there also..) then the problems started. I discovered that I had high nitrates: about 20 on Salifert test so I started the maintenance program: got rid of the 2-3 cm sand in the DT because of the wrong depth, siphoning of the sump, changing the media in the reactors etc. I bought some more corals, some Acropora, some more Montiporas, Stylophora.. Because of a faulty salimeter ( the paper with the scale moved inside the glass ) the salinity went to 43 and lots of corals died or dying .
I slowly went back. After that, in September I drilled my pavement and installed a 300 l refugium with 18 cm sand bed and Chaetomorpha in the basement with reverse light schedule. After 3 weeks I installed another 200 l tank there with live rock. At the beginning I had some problems with keeping levels of water ( maybe you remember our discussions ) so the salinity varied 1-1.5 points daily for some weeks.
Before installing the calcium reactor I had some variations in the levels of kH and Ca. , 1 month ago.
After that I thought everything was stable, so I introduced some more corals. But I kept losing some of them. Apparently lots of Montiporas digitata died and also some Acroporas. In November, after the last addition on sand in the RDSB and some more live rock the Cyano started. I had to leave for one week and when I come back more SPS were lost due to Cyano this time ( even thou my friend was at my house every day feeding and cleaning the Cyano).
<I'd throttle back your carbon additions. In fact, I'd remove the bio-pellets entirely. This/these are likely driving your Cyano problem here>
So when I come back I reduced the lighting for the T5 ( I have an AquaMedic 3x250 w CoralVue ReefLux 14000 K plus 4 T5 x 80 w ATI 2 white 2 blue ) turning them off . ( they were on 12 hours ON ) . I only kept the MH. The Cyano receded , every day I clean it and blast with a 1200 l/h pump every rock and coral. But it continues to grow on some corals killing them.
I fragged some of the Acropora and the frags until now seem to be doing fine . But every day I discover that another SPS coral is declining.
Other values : nitrates : 2-3 Seachem test
Phosphates : <0.01 Salifert
<Not an issue; in fact, I'd feed more to increase>
Silicates : 0
About the lights: after turning down the 4 T5 I have seen lost in coloration also in otherwise hardy corals : Montipora plates , so I have turned them on again and I have measured the PAR readings : bottom 150 -100 between bulbs, middle 230 and top 400. Under the bulbs 1100 micromols/m2/second. . But before turning on again the T 5 (2 days ago ) the readings with only the MH were seriously lower ( 40-60 bottom between bulbs ).
In the meantime I have lost some Acropora that was with me for 10 months and survived all that. But there are some Montiporas and some a Acroporas frags that appear to be doing great so far. I have colonies of Stylophora and Porites that are ok.
So, why am I loosing SPS corals? Is the stability of the system? All the changes I have done? Is there something wrong in the water even if I get all these " normal " readings?
<Toxicity from the Cyano likely is number one; perhaps a lack of chemical food (too little soluble phosphate) is an issue as well>
It gets pretty frustrating because is not only the money ( by the way water movement is done by 4 Vortech MP 40 ) but all the energy and study time ( we have 2 kids 2 and 5 years old so time is important)
<It always is my friend. An important "lesson" in life is to learn how to portion ones attention. "First things first"... your own health, happiness; the family and friends about you... petfish are way down the line of importance>
and the willingness that I feel I am starting to question. I feed the fish 4 times a day ( defrost and rinsed Mysis and krill and bloodworms, spectrum pellets, Nori and Spirulina and 2 big fresh clams ( I think this is the term, the black shells) that I keep in my hands until everything is eaten. All the fish eat a lot and they are fat. But I arrived in one point when I look away from the DT when I pass by, just to avoid seeing sick corals . It was not easy at all, all my friends consider me strange at least do all this for a reef tank, even if they like it when they come by. Keep in mind that I live in eastern Europe where LFS are far away and don't stock livestock, and for example a A. Japonicus costs 250 $. For me, having a SPS tank would mean that all that I have done is worth it, but something is wrong, and I am not sure what it is. My wife is supportive, but I would really want to see some results .
So in conclusion I feel that I have done a lot of efforts and at the moment I cannot see the results, so it seems it is very difficult, but I see a lot of successful tanks done with maybe less efforts and I am wondering what am I missing.
Thank you for your patience,
Andrei in snow covered Romania
<BobF in (today) sunny S. California. Do remove the carbon additions and increase the feedings>
Re: The most difficult question. More Biology, Less "Technology"" 12/14/13
Hello Mr. F
<Mr. Andrei>
thank you for your answer. I will stop the biopellets reactor, I was just not sure if my RDSB is mature enough to handle the denitrification by himself,
<You'll likely see no change in NO3>
my plan was that when the nitrates would arrive to zero I would stop the biopellets .
About the nitrates, increasing the feeding sounds great, but aren't they the ones that fuel the Cyano?
<Not necessarily, no... see WWM re the several inputs here>
Shouldn't the desired levels be zero absolutely?
<Never. The chemo-autotrophic life (e.g. corals, many microbes, algae... ) NEED some/measurable nutrients, including nitrogen compounds and phosphate>
Because I also have a anti phosphates reactor running as well... If the chemical food might be missing for the corals,
<Yes>
maybe I should feed more amino acids and vitamins ( I do it like once every 10 days half the dosage ).
<Am not a fan of such reactors in most settings... "More Biology, Less "Technology"" Is my motto here. B>
Thank you again,
Andrei
Re: The most difficult question; further input re a/the mysteries of too much, too little and out of balance nutrient issues 12/14/15
Hello,
Thank you. The biopellets are off.. will see what happens. I took the biological route for sure, with the refugium and live rock tank.
What about all the beautiful tanks in several ' tank of the month ' editions that report zero NO3 and PO4 ? Normally you don't see any outstanding SPS tank presented that has any detectable nutrients.
<Mmm, allow me to "try" explaining: All systems have something/s that are "rate limiting"... An example, let's think of you and I and our desire for more "stuff"... We're likely limited by funds/money... Most aquarium systems have a nutrient limitation... but it is not often well-understood what this is (a topic of huge possibilities): Your system is likely being "too driven" by an excess of available carbon... which is fueling the BGA/Cyano, that in turn is poisoning your stony corals... I am hoping by limiting the carbon and allowing sufficient simple nutrient presence, to have your Scleractinians (et al.) outcompete the Cyano. Now; as to those other systems that are in "apparent balance"; they have NO3 and HPO4 limitation... BY the desired organisms taking these up readily; NOT by their reactor/media removal>
I think this is very important. Lots of people out there would benefit from understanding these basic philosophies.
<Ah yes; I do so agree. Do you understand me above here?>
Please consider that I want nothing less than the most beautiful SPS tank with colors and corals health. I am willing to invest time, energy, and money. What would you recommend as optimal values for NO3 and PO4?
<Low, but still measurable.... a few ppm for [NO3], and 0.05-0.01 ppm or so for [HPO4]>
And after my system description do you think I would need anything else as hardware or technique?
<Mmm... likely THE best investment in your study, gear is an understanding of RedOx potential, perhaps an investigation into ozone... >
Thank you,
Andrei
<Thank you Andrei. BobF>
Re: The most difficult question 12/14/15
Oh, and this reading: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_5/volume_5_3/phosphates.htm
Re: The most difficult question 12/14/15
Tank you, I understand.
<Ahh!>
One more question: I run ozone on my skimmer and have a 350 -380 ORP reading. What do you think about these values?

Andrei
Re: The most difficult question; stony coral issues, BGA... ongoing, redux-ed 12/16/13
Hello Mr. F,
<Andrei; do please change your subject above. The spam filter is removing your posts>
How are you?
Here things don't look very good aquarium wise.
If someone would ask me I would say that I am now more evolved than any other time . On the equipment side I run a calcium reactor, 4 VorTech mp 40 synchronised, I use a PAR meter, I do KH and Ca tests every 2 days and they are OK, I have a refugium etc.
On the knowledge side, I read books, I understand the chemistry ( I am a chemical engineer ) , I know all the 'tank of the month ' on English and Italian speaking sites, I know who Julian Sprung, Sanjay Joshi , Daniel Knop and others are , and I communicate with you....
But my tank has never been worse. ( except for when all my fishes died ). The fishes are ok, but the SPS corals are declining under my eyes and I don't know what to do. All my tests are ok, I have a apex Neptune computer with all the readings all right ( including oRP) but my stony corals continue to die and hardy corals that have survived the 43 salinity and changes in temp in the past are losing colors and get covered in Cyano. This is drawing me crazy! What could be wrong?
<... as we've been e-chatting re... Mostly they're chemically starved; and poisoned by the BGA that has been allowed, encouraged to (over) grow your substrate and more here. Re-read our most recent emails re>
Maybe the changes brought by the introduction of the refugium - ( 100 kg of sand 2 months ago - the last 20 kg of sand only 2 weeks ago ) and some 40 kg of live rock could trigger this?
I am lost and frustrated and I really need someone to help me ( here there are no reef clubs or LFS that could help me ) .
Andrei
<Re read.... B>

Cyano and troubles; ongoing; re-laments re Scleractinian issue 12/17/13
Hello Mr. F
I have understood what you explained but sometimes one can feel lost in this hobby. But is still only a hobby, so we should get some perspective and go on learning more all the time. The hard part is that we deal with living creatures, but " it's all been done before " so...
Here are some photos of some of the corals that were doing great 3 weeks ago...
I am performing 5% ( 60 l ) water changes every day if you agree, I clean every day and dose amino acids and vitamins ( weekly dose of Fuel from Seachem divided daily ) .
Could I do something more?

Maybe let the lights off for a couple of days? I don't know about this one, probably not a good idea.
Thank you,
Andrei

Re: Cyano and troubles 12/18/13
<... change the title Andrei. This was relegated to the spam folder again>
Hello Mr. F
How are you?
Here, I changed all the filters in the RO unit and started doing daily 5 % water changes.
<Already stated>
I discovered that my RO water had ten times more dissolved organics than it should ( I don't know the measures units but it had a value of 140 and after the change of filters had 15 ) .
I also dose amino acids togheder with coral snow from KorallenZucht that is supposed to facilitate the absorption for the corals. After 2 days the corals seem to be a little better, but the Cyano started appearing on the sand, something that before didn't happened . So in my opinion I am dealing here with chemical starved corals that are attacked by cyani
<A semantic difference: Not "attacked", more like "poisoned">
and need strength and the amino acids that I am dosing for them that probably is fuelling more Cyano.
Please tell me your feeling about this and what do you think I should do next.
<Nothing. B>
Thank you,
Andrei
Re: Cyanobacteria 12/18/13
Thank you for answering,
I know the water changes were discussed, I just wanted your opinion on the dissolved organics matter.
<... not dissolved organics... Dissolved solids. And no; not likely a large issue, but an incremental (perhaps a few to several percent)>
Please be more clear if you like, should I continue the amino acids dosing even if they might fuelling Cyano ?

Thank you and please excuse me if I fail to understand you sometimes...
Andrei
<Your English is far better than my Romanian. B>
Re: Cyanobacteria 12/19/13
Thank you,
And if we don't communicate again, I wish you Happy and Worm Holydays.
Andrei
<And you and yours as well. BobF>

Remote Deep Sand Bed question (maint.); and Scler. hlth. follow up f' 1/7/14
Hello Mr. F and a worm Happy New Year from a cold Romania,
<Hey Andrei>
Well, the things have evolved interestingly around here. As you may remember I was having problems with my SPS corals loosing colors and getting covered in cyanobacteria along with the live rock in the DT and some of the sand, approximately 6 weeks after I started the RDSB in my basement with 100 Kg of new dry sand. I have been doing what you have advised me and the results started to show. First of all, my corals started getting their colors back, the Cyano receded a lot and I see polyps showing on some SPS that I thought they were long gone. ( they were covered in Cyano during the worst days and
I would brush them every day but show no polyps for several weeks ).
Basically I added amino acids and Vibrance ( Iodide ) every day mixed with CoralSnow from KorallenZucht that is " a liquid secondary biological facilitator for elements like B-Balance or Potassium-Iodide/Fluoride Concentrate. Compatible with all elements, also for Amino Acid and Vitalizer " that seemed to work for my case, 5 % water changes daily and cleaning the corals and rock. And I left the lights off for one day, and after that the things really improved. I still have some Cyano on rocks but the corals, even if they are not perfectly recovered, don`t get it directly on they`r tissue anymore.
That was the introduction that says that your advices worked.
Now about my question: I have attached a photo of my RDSB installed in my basement after 10 weeks of functioning. In the lower level there is a live rock than from where the water returns in my upstairs sump and then the DT.
As you see there is live rock over the sand bed also. My concern is about the correct maintenance of this RDSB. I have read lots of information on wwm on DSB but most of them are about Display DSB and not RDSB, so I want to be sure how to adapt them to my conditions. The only flow in the DSB tank comes from the return pipe from the mid-sump. Is this enough or not, to keep detritus not depositing on the bed?
<Should be; if not, do stir, siphon out if too much accumulates>
Should I use some filter sock on the return pipe?
<A good idea if there's an apparent need/use>
Should I siphon the detritus accumulated on the surface of the sand?
<Ah yes>
Should I add some snails that would stir the sand?
<You could... perhaps Nassarius genus>
In the morning I see especially on the Chaetomorpha lots of tiny stars and snails and now some channels started to be seen through the glass that would indicate the presence of worms. But how would I know if they are enough?
<By their actions, results... in time>
All the sand was dry, my aquarium water just passed above it and I added the live rock that you see.
I am trying to avoid the hardening of the upper level of this sand bed, and also the formation of hydrogen sulfide, so basically I want to maintain it in good conditions so it will fulfill it`s primary purpose : nutriments removal.
<Understood... Patience, as always>
thank you,
Andrei
<Welcome. BobF>
PS: my Zanclus Cornutus which is now 9 months in the DT is doing great along with all the other fishes.
<Ah good>

mass recession/decline... Scleractinian starvation, allelopathy 11/14/13
Hello,
<Howsit?>
I'm really frustrated with my reef.

It's been up approaching a year and a half. It's a 120 gallons with about
100 pounds of combined live/previously dried/dead rock. Circulation is
about 4000 gph through 4 Koralia pumps plus an Eheim 1260 return from the
sump. Two skimmers, an old Tunze 9010 plus a recently added Tunze 9410 are
in the 40 gallon sump. Lights are 2 54W T5s ATI Blue Plus, and 2 Hamilton
metal halide 175W 14K bulbs. These were all changed for new ones last
month. Presumably, according to an old article by Sanjay Joshi on-line, the
Hamilton 14K bulbs were the lowest par 175W bulbs tested, so I thought they
would be perfect for a predominantly lower-light LPS tank.
I keep salinity at 1.026. Calcium last tested at 400 ppm, and kH I try to
keep at 9, though it does tend to drop quickly to 7 or so if |I don't add
alkalinity a couple times a week, even though I have an ATO with saturated
kalk that I added as a result of the kH dropping.
I test zero for phosphates and nitrates,
<Stop. This is at least part of your issue. See WWM re NO3, HPO4...
chemo-photosynthates need appreciable nutrient>
though I realize this can't be the case (because I do have some nuisance
algae and feed well) and is due to the inaccuracy of the API tests
<Junk as far as kits go>
I have for these which apparently don't detect low levels well. I had my
local aquarium store repeat these and they got the same results, but they
also use the same tests! Last 3 months or so I added a very small amount of
carbon and Phosguard (because of the nuisance algae) into separate media
bags in the sump...about a half cup of each. I plan to gradually increase
this. Never used these up until very recently.
Magnesium is at 1250 when tested a couple of weeks ago.
There are definitely some scattered tufts of hair algae in my tank, some
Valonia, but nothing major. I pluck them out regularly. Used to have some
red Cyano but not for several months now. For the past month and a half
I've had a stubborn brown algae on the substrate which may be
Dinoflagellates, though I'm not a 100% sure. I suction it out but it
returns within a day or so. However, this is only the past month and a
half, and my problem has been happening for more than a year.
I vacuum the substrate weekly, and do an 8% water change at the same time.
New water is made through a multi-stage RO system purchased specifically
with my chloramine-treated city water in mind...with the additional GAC
stage. The carbon stages in it are only about 3-4 months old. The membrane
still seems good as the tds is always under 8 ppm. I use Instant Ocean
salt. Used Kent for some time before.
<Some real products, some scams>
I have only 3 fish, 2 Gobies and a Royal Gramma. One pistol shrimp.
You can see from my pictures I have about 15 corals. Most are LPS, several
Euphyllias, with some Favia, Favites, Candy Cane, Lobos, and a large red
Trachy. There are also a couple Monti Caps. All are fairly well spaced out.
I feed a cube of mysis to all the LPS at least once per week, sometimes
more often.
<.... why are you writing us w/o searching, reading first? These can't live
on Mysids alone...>
Getting to the point...all my corals start out seemingly quite healthy,
with strong feeding responses. They are all dipped in Revive
<...>
and quarantined for 2-3 weeks until I feel comfortable there are no pests.
Many looked great for several months, but in time start to show slow
tissue necrosis and recession. Sometimes the receding margin is clean
looking (lobo), sometimes there's a whitish mucus-like band (the
favia/favites), other times there is obvious necrotic tissue that starts to
peel away and flop around in the current before disappearing (euphyllia).
The appearance of the damaged area seems to depend on which type of coral
it is. In time the feeding response weakens. It's affecting more than half
the corals to a greater or lesser extent. Sometimes it seems to slow down,
then start again. Recently my candy cane coral which looked great for
months has started to lose heads...seemingly without reason. My receding
torch coral has some tiny white
copepods living on it, but the other sick corals don't show any critters at
all, so I'm not sure on their impact or significance. I think it's
important to point out that there are a few corals that seem impervious to
whatever is going on. For example the large Euphyllia Divisa on the left,
and the Trachyphyllia have never shown any problems and continue to look
great....so far! Also the 2 Monti Caps have grown considerably after
starting out as tiny frags. Over-all I have only lost one coral, a
Plerogyra, and that was many months ago. So the decline happens quite
slowly, but it's little comfort as the corals are clearly declining, and I
have certainly lost entire heads of a torch coral, a candy cane, and
probably 80% of the tissue on one Favites. Most recently both my Lobos are
starting to show some recession, and one shows reduced feeding response.
One has been with me about 9 months, and other about 6.
For some time I thought it was the low kH, but have been on top of that for
some months now. Thought lights too strong and reduced halides to only 3-4
hours and 7 hrs for the T5s for some months but saw no improvement. Then
thought maybe not enough light so I increased T5 to 10 hours per day, and 6
for metal halides. Maybe I should increase it further? It's just that
towards the end of this photo-period some of the coralstart to show signs
of closing up as if they've had enough! As I said above, my understanding
is these are quite mild as far as metal halides go...from what I remember
from that Joshi article it was about 30 ppfd at like 20 inches...I know the
details make a difference, but I can't remember. I don`t have a par meter.
However, I placed one of my Torch corals and Favites into a 10 gallon
"hospital" tank under a different single 150W 10K MH for the last 2 months
or so, and don't see any significant changes...at first thought the
recession
stopped, but now see some progression.
I'm thinking a possibility is maybe some Chloramines getting through my RO
system? But then that would damage the RO membrane and increase the TDS,
which has remained consistently low. Maybe a disease, but would that kill
so slowly, and so many different types of coral? Based on the photos and
description, is it possible to tell if this is a water quality, lighting,
or an infection issue? I may try iodine dipping some of the corals soon.
Also want to try the Bayer insecticide dip I read many using successfully
on-line...only thing is that the Bayer insecticide recommended is not
available in Canada, I believe because there are some environmental
concerns with one of the active ingredients.
Not sure where to go from here, and I feel that I need to do something ASAP
as many of my corals are still potentially saveable, but not for long.
Thanks for reading this loooong letter, but I didn't want to leave out any
possibleclues. Appreciate any inputyou can provide.
Regards.
Dave
<Have just skipped down. Read a while re the above notes and write back if
you have questions. Bob Fenner>

Re: mass recession/decline 11/15/13
Hi Bob...thanks for getting back to me, but you lost me. Which "above notes" do you mean?
<... see prev. corr.... the need for soluble nutrients; which you list as "zero">
That mysids are insufficient food?
<... and again, re-search WWM re LPS, Scleractinian nutrition (foods/feeding)... >
I assure you I have read everything on WWM regarding possible causes of my problems. As far as feeding mysis, my understanding is these are the most nutritious option...much better than brine shrimp. I have coral pellets but my corals don't seem to like them, and usually regurgitate them so I stopped trying. The mysids they seem to like. Many aquarists don't feed their corals anything at all and they do well. In a tank I kept some years ago I didn't feed my Euphyllia a thing and it grew huge...whereas the ones I have now are receding. So, I'm not following your point, sorry. Were my photo files too large?
<Yes; happens too often... our requirements are gone over and over...>
If so I apologize, I re-sized them.
Thanks,
Dave
<Your Cnidarians are starving/starved. BobF>

Re: mass recession/decline 11/1613
Hi Bob,
I said my tests show zero, but explained that I know my test kit is wrong...I know the levels can't be so low since I have lots of film algae on the glass that needs to be cleaned daily, and some hair algae on the rock. For these reasons I do think there should be plenty of soluble nutrients. Also, I have read so many items on other sites like Reef Central about people having miniscule amounts of phosphates approaching zero, and thriving reefs displays. Anyhow, I will take your advice and increase feedings for a while to see what happens, but hard to believe that's the problem since I stuff my corals with mysis weekly and they consume a lot.
Thanks,
Dave
Keep reading
Re: mass recession/decline 11/17/13
Hi Bob,
As mentioned, I have. I went through many of the pages on WWM regarding coral feeding since yesterday, and honestly I recognize most of it because I have read all of it over the last few months/years. It's not that I haven't searched for answers...I refer to WWM all the time, ever since my Tanganyikan Cichlid tank from years ago. I don't mean to be argumentative, but it's just hard to believe the problem is nutrition because 1) Plentiful algae in the tank tells me I have nutrients ``a-plenty``,
<.... see our initial email... you stated that nitrates, phosphates were "zero">
and 2) I feed regularly. Just this morning I was trying to feed my Lobophyllias. One is still feeding aggressively but is showing some recession, while the other has become very "lethargic" with feeding, and has significantly reduced expansion in the last few weeks...but, this one was one of my most aggressive feeders and consumed lots of mysis every week. Can't fathom how it could be starving. Also, I have tried other foods in the past, like frozen Cyclops, and coral pellets, but my corals never showed interest in these, while gobbling up the mysis.
On the other hand, it`s true that it is hard to explain how numerous corals of different species are deteriorating so slowly in a similar way...that`s why I have been stumped.
Dave
<One last time; but a bit different in the hope... IF it were me/mine, I'd over-feed some meaty foods... laced with a commercial prep. of HUFAs, vitamins. I don't suspect that there is a pathogen involved here; as much concurrent evidence is missing. B>

Re: mass recession/decline 12/4/13
Hi Bob,
we exchanged some emails 2 weeks ago about the general decline and tissue recession of some of my LPS corals despite seemingly good water conditions.

Many seemed good for several months before starting to recede and you believed that I wasn't feeding enough (was feeding once weekly).
<And that some aspect/s of allelopathy were at play>
I wanted to follow up as today I noticed further issues. The multi-headed Lobo suddenly showed significant necrosis of marginal tissue and has exposed some skeleton. You can see that long strand of tissue floating in the current. Yesterday it looked perfect, and I fed each head Mysis last night. This one, unlike some of the others I've only had about one month, so I'm thinking it hasn't had time to really "starve" in my tank, has it?
<...? Can, could be starving all the time along>
Also, the solitary red Lobo I have had for several months. It recently started to recede and I placed it in the shade under a ledge as algae was starting to grow on the exposed skeleton...I have also been feeding it daily since our emails 2
weeks ago. It is about 6 inches from that Favia and I don't believe at any risk of getting stung. Getting to the point, it continues to recede despite the daily feedings. I would have expected the deterioration to at least stop/slow down if it was due to starvation. Do any of these observations make you think it's not a nutrition issue after all? I guess in my heart of hearts I'm still thinking it's a water quality, or perhaps a pathogen issue...just can't figure out what exactly. Appreciate any feedback.
Thanks,
Dave
<... Time to have you review re Scleractinian health period. Read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/SclerDisF11.htm
and the linked files above in series. Bob Fenner>
Fw: mass recession/decline 12/4/13
Sorry Bob, I just sent the previous email and something occurred to me. For some months now, after a Euphyllia of mine bleached (it has since recovered), I had turned down my 2* 175W metal halide photoperiod down to 3 hours, while the 2*54W T5 photoperiod has been 10 hours. On my previous tanks years ago I would have my halides on for a full 12 hours. Could the issue be insufficient light? It's a 25" high 120 gallon tank by the way.
Thanks again.
Dave
<Lighting may, might have played a role in triggering the allelopathy... Keep reading. You will find that carbon, some other approaches will alleviate symptoms... B>

Please visit our Sponsors