Bleeding Apple Scoly

[JustinM]

I just picked up a small bleeding apple scoly on Saturday. The wife has been bugging for one for some time and the 100$ price tag couldn't be overlooked. When I say small, I mean it, like a little bigger than a silver dollar.

I know these aren't really high maintenance corals and grow super slow so with time this specimen will grow into something super nice, I hope. For people with them, how often do you feed them, and doesn't feeding them help them grow? The guy I got it from said he got it as a frag a year and a half ago, it it may have grown .75". He was feeding it phyto once a week. Is it ok to feed it daily with something more meaty? Thanks for any help.

 

[e46slc]

I feed mine mysis and it loves it.

 

[JustinM]

Do you think feeding everyday is ok, or just a couple times a week?

 

[organism]

He was feeding it phyto once a week. Is it ok to feed it daily with something more meaty? Thanks for any help.

Weird, he was feeding it phytoplankton? Not much use for corals, if anything that's something you probably don't want in your tank as far as net gain vs loss of water quality. I'd stick to feeding it meaty foods if anything, PE mysid seems to go over well, and most of them love pellet food

 

[JustinM]

Yeah, when he said he was feeding it phyto I was a little bewildered. I have always heard of feeding them mysis, seems like that's what a lot of people are doing. I have an assortment of meaty seafoods, including PE mysis. It swallowed a couple pellets today, but not many. Maybe that's why it only grew 3/4", unless that's normal.

I'm new to this coral, just trying to gain as much useful info as I can.

 

[MJB1224]

I got one about a month ago and it's doing great. I tried feeding it some PE mysis a few times and it can't close fast enough before my tusk steals it. Its amazing how bright the green is on them with the actinics on.

Let see some pics of yours.

 

[Reef Bass]

+1 for why phyto?

I suggest krill over mysis as many mysis are harvested from fresh water, where as krill are marine in origin and thus contain the beneficial fatty acids that contribute to long term health and survivability.

 

[brannock_16]

For all of my lps I use fauna Marin lps pellets. I have had amazing results feeding my acans, chalices, and other lps with this food. My bleeding apple would devour this stuff (until I traded it). It triggers an immediate response in all of them. I target feed all my lps once a week with this... And then they get whatever they can catch when I feed the fish.

 

[JustinM]

I put a 20 oz bottle cut in half over it to feed it, other wise my hermits and goby try stealing food from it. Couldn't find any krill, and I think it's too small. Where can you buy fauna marin lps pellets? I have looked everywhere for them.

I'll snap a pic or 2 of it tonight. You think when you add a scoly, that would be the first thing you do.

 

[JustinM]

I got one about a month ago and it's doing great. I tried feeding it some PE mysis a few times and it can't close fast enough before my tusk steals it. Its amazing how bright the green is on them with the actinics on.

Let see some pics of yours.

Yeah the green is pretty sick. It is neonish if you know what i mean. Just wish it would inflate a little more, but it's only been in for 2 days and coming from a phyto diet.

 

[brannock_16]

I bought my bottle of fauna Marin lps pellets from cherry corals. And this stuff goes a long way! I have a lps dominant tank and haven't even used half a bottle in 8 months.

 

[mil hse]

+1 on the fauna Marin lps pellets. There great! I also feed brine, mysis, mussels, squid, basicly everything i feed my fish. And i usually will feed mine every other night. Also mine took a few days before it inflated. Cherry Corals has it, but im sure if you googled it there would be more places

 

[JustinM]

Here is the best pic I could get, I can't wait for it to swell up. I'm gonna baby it, so i due time.
<a href="http://s1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb339/justinm25/?action=view&current=IMG_2675.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb339/justinm25/IMG_2675.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[MJB1224]

Looks good! It took mine about a week to settle in and mine was shipped. Mine likes low flow and the bottom of the tank.

 

[JustinM]

Thanks, we'll see how it looks in a couple more days.

 

[Gillundr]

These corals actually grow pretty fast if you feed them. I cut my bleeding apple into 3 pieces (a half and 2 quarters) and the quarter sized pieces rounded out in about 8 months. Granted they were small, about the size of a silver dollar, but healthy. The large one took a little longer to round out, about a year. But that's because of it's larger size. They readily tank things like mysis, oyster feast, cyclops, and any other meaty food. I have even seen them eat fish pellets. If a fish is stealing it's food maybe try to remove the coral to be fed in a separate bowl, or put a top over it for feeding. You can gut the bottom off a plastic soda bottle and use it like a feeding dome to help keep fish and crabs away. When they are happy they will be inflated a puffy. I find mine likes moderate light on the sand (full light no shade but on the sand). I have a 24 inch tank and run 250w halides with some T5 actinics. I do run a pretty short light cycle though especially in the summer months. But I have kept that coral under 400w and 150w MH and it did fine with a little acclimation. They are a super hardy coral and in my experience pretty tough to kill and grow at a fast clip if fed. If you don't feed it, it won't grow fast at all though.

 

[JustinM]

It actually looks much more puffed up today. I can also see how addictive this piece is going to be. I was up at the crack of dawn staring at it in the dark, and saw its feeders out, so of course I fed it. Oh no, I can't afford to get bit by a scoly bug. There's gotta be some kind of vaccine for this.

 

[snorvich]

I got one about a month ago and it's doing great. I tried feeding it some PE mysis a few times and it can't close fast enough before my tusk steals it. Its amazing how bright the green is on them with the actinics on.

Let see some pics of yours.

Get plastic covers for your LPS. Works great, no stealing. :wavehand:

 

[MJB1224]

Get plastic covers for your LPS. Works great, no stealing. :wavehand:

Yeah but the only problem with that is I'm not putting my hand in my tank to cover something up when there's food floating around and I have a hungry Tusk and Crosshatch. :uhoh2:

 

[Gillundr]

Yeah but the only problem with that is I'm not putting my hand in my tank to cover something up when there's food floating around and I have a hungry Tusk and Crosshatch. :uhoh2:

There are tools that can reach the sand bed for feeding and you don't need to get wet. I couldn't live without my long grabbers and extendable sea squirt! All livestock does best if you keeps your hands and arms out of the tank