My sun coral isn't doing well... suggestions?

[Brad S]

I got this about 2 months ago... 1/2 of the coral will open fully and wait for food on a regular basis. The other side never opens up more than 30% but it does get food, just not nearly as much as the other half...

I noticed on the side that doesn't eat some of the orange skin is peeling off and revealing skeleton beneath at the base of maybe 3 heads. It is directly underneath a 250w MH in a nano cube 24, there isn't much shade in the tank, could this be an issue?

Aside from that all my other corals and fish are doing well, and water quality is on par... I'm lost on this...

 

[JavaJones]

I think that each head is supposed to be fed directly. You may want to give the heads enough time to feed in separate bowl. I think most folks recommend keeping the coral in the shade.

 

[Brad S]

I think that each head is supposed to be fed directly. You may want to give the heads enough time to feed in separate bowl. I think most folks recommend keeping the coral in the shade.

See I thought a sun coral was colonial and every head didn't need to be feed, just as long as you got, "most," of them it'd be fine... Is that wrong?

If so this could explain alot about my problem, the heads closest to the die off hardly ever eat. But then again, an area in very close proximity gets tons of food...

 

[FinzAquatics]

Each head has to be fed as an individual. Also Tubastrea (Sun polyp) is typically a lower light coral. Directly under a light like you have may also be causing the coral to not be fully extended.

 

[APISTOBORELLI]

I cut a water bottle top off and cover the polyps with it to feed. I make sure every polyp gets food. Seems to work for me.

The only other thing I can think of it too much flow over it.

 

[JayM]

they don't like too much flow or light, as recommended.

I have not been able to move mine and have polyps come out, but mine love cyclopeeze, and the bottle trick works. You just need to feed them 15 minutes AFTER you feed the rest of the tank.

 

[GinaD]

This is a very helpful thread! I was wondering the same things.

 

[pvh]

If they don't open up what I do is put food right on top of their un-open mouths. Kinda like force feeding them...they'll eventually will open up to eat. After a few times they will automatically open without the food. That's how I got my black sun corals to eat. Now it's competing with the orange/yellow sun coral for food.

 

[RayD]

Typically they'll start to open up when they smell/sense the food hence the term of "training" them. You can teach them to open during the day.

Sun Corals require very specialized care and the majority of us are great at it at first and then we get lax about it.

They require spot feeding often. Every head.

 

[RichConley]

Tubastrea doesnt care about light. You can put it right under a MH bulb, or under a rock, and it doesnt care. High light will not harm it. High light MAY cause algae to grow on it, which is bad news.

It also IS colonial, and not all the polyps need to be fed.


This thread is pretty good:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1156818&perpage=25&pagenumber=1




Also, what are your Alk, Ca, Mag?

 

[maxfischer]

Each head has to be fed as an individual. Also Tubastrea (Sun polyp) is typically a lower light coral. Directly under a light like you have may also be causing the coral to not be fully extended.

not the case at all

 

[pvh]

I think it depends on the type of sun corals you have, either branching type or colony type. I've heard the branching type require feeding every head, but not the colony type.

 

[this is me]

Mine is a colony and when I feed, not all of the heads get the food. They're doing well in my tank.
I also heard that the branching type need to be fed individually and the colony one doesn't.

 

[Greg Hiller]

>It also IS colonial, and not all the polyps need to be fed. <

I agree, to an extent. The only problem can be that if the live tissue has receeded sufficiently then the coral may no longer be able to transfer energy from one head to the other. The branching black/green Tubastrea micrantha also IMO/IME does not need to have every polyp fed also, but with a branching coral like this you will need to distribute the food reasonably well. Very little energy can be transferred over a long distance. You cannot feed the bottom and assume polyps on a branch even two inches away are going to get much. FWIW, I've found that the branching form of this coral can do well and grow, but it is much more sensitive to infections. I think it should be kept in very strong water flow like it is found on the reef. Anyone ever dive by these guys? The water flow is usually very fast.