Duncan not happy. What is this stuff?

[Jon0807]

My duncan hasn't been fully open for a few days. Today I noticed some stuff on the branch. It's sort of a yellowish fluffy string. Is this what could be irritating it? I just did a water test and nothing's really out of the norm. Phosphate .25, No3 50, Mag 1400, Alk 8.4, Cal 450. Yes nitrates are high but it's been this high before and my duncan thrived.

 

[Reefpuck]

Looks like you got lots of algae too. Why not try to bring nitrates down down a bit and see if that helps. Just because you had high nitrates in the past...doesn't necessarily mean it was thriving before.

 

[Jon0807]

Yeah I'm overdue for a water change. I've tried growing chaeto with no luck. I'm experimenting with GHA as a nutrient export lol

 

[Mark9]

If you are worried about that yellow stuff, shake the duncan until it retracts, take it out of the water and brush the stalk and plug clean with a toothbrush.
But, if you are overdue for a wc, could be you've just let the tank go south.
Do a deep clean, some regular water changes and see if you get any improvement.
Maybe harsh, but it could also be your lights are crap.
Could be many things.

 

[Uncle99]

It is not uncommon for this coral to retract for a few days. More than 1 week consecutive I would be concerned.
I have not seen Duncan's with yellow stalks, not a problem, just never seen....always neon green.
Corals thrive in nutrient poor waters thus nitrate, phosphate must be zero.
Red Sea No Pox can help with nitrate and agent green with phosphate.

 

[Rover88]

You know those almost look like eggs

What kind of fish do you keep in that tank?

 

[mcgyvr]

Its hard to tell what all that yellow is all over the skeleton of the coral.. Looks like it might be some encrusting sponge growth which can certainly irritate corals too..
A toothbrush will knock it off..

I'd suggest actively pursuing methods to correct your excessive nutrient levels and worrying about that more than anything else..
"the norm" isn't an optimal environment for stable/healthy coral growth..
Your nitrate levels are much higher than I would recommend for any LPS/SPS corals for long term success.. And your phosphate level isn't good either..

While your duncan may have "tolerated" your less than optimal water conditions in the past it may not continue that trend..

Your lack of proper maintenance and or tank setup is catching up to you..
take a step back and address those issues before anything else..

 

[Jon0807]

I admit that my maintenance has slipped since growing frustrated with not being able to grow chaeto to help with the nutrients. I still change filter socks and clean out the skimmer, but I was really waiting to see if anything happened in my fuge. It was then I noticed that GHA was growing pretty well. I just did a water change this weekend. I still have to do a test to see where things are. I have a feeling I will have to do several to get things where they need to be. Before Saturday, my last water change was about a month ago.

You know those almost look like eggs

What kind of fish do you keep in that tank?

The only fish that would possibly lay eggs are my pair of clowns, but I don't think their eggs look like that. Plus they don't really hang out by the duncan.

 

[Uncle99]

Nope, not clown eggs at all.
Seems there is some yellow in your substrate that is the same colour as what's on the Duncan.....or at least it looks that way...