Elegance Coral

[Angel2626]

Hey everyone. I have a question about elegance coral. I got my hands on two of them and have had them since May. They have been doing fine but in the last several days they have not been opening at all. I can actually see the skeleton in the smaller one which I have never been able to see before. My question is, do any of you know of anything that these corals are really sensitive to? They have been in the same tank since we got them but all of a sudden they are struggling. Any suggestions or ideas?
Thanks,
Angel

 

[fallinapart]

I had one for a few months before it died, (gradually over a 2 week period) and from what I could gather from research on the internet is that they are difficult to keep, and as a general rule don't last very long in captivity. I'm sure the longevity would depend on light & water quality and placement in the tank. also how long they were in captivity before arriving at your tank.

They are one of the prettiest corals out there as far as I'm concerned, but I will not buy another one any time soon, at least until the hardiness of the species can be improved upon. I share your grief.

Norman

 

[Angel2626]

Yea I know what you mean. I had heard that they were hard to keep and have even heard an explanation as to why (supposedly it is b/c of the way they are harvested now and also b/c they are getting them from lower on the reefs). Anyway, I found these 2 pieces (one has 6 mouths the other has 2) and if it had not been for the price ($20 each) I wouldn't have even attempted them. From what I was told they had had them for quite some time, way over 6 months I am guessing, and they were prefectly healthy. They were stunning when I got them, I can probably hunt up a picture to show off. ;-) I was hoping when I got them that they were old enough that their hardiness was higher than the new one's coming in.
We just put them in another tank, on the substrate, hoping that they will like it better under the brighter lights. We shall see.:worried2:

 

[mamagoose45]

As Norman said, you're not alone on this one. We had a heck of a beauty in our softie tank that looked amazing for well over a year. Then all of a sudden, it started to recede, and that was the end of it. We have no idea what exactly happened. It was doing amazing, our clowns were hosting it, it was even growing - slowly but still growing. Then death. Your guess is as good as mine...

 

[Angel2626]

Yea I totally understand where you both are coming from on this one. Like I said, I had been warned before hand that they were hard to keep, but I had never been in the situation to actually get one. We talked it over and because they were cheap and looked very healthy we decided to get them. One thing that I think could have played into it is where they were placed in the tank...they were not in the substrate. Also, we have an extremely nosey Peppermint Shrimp that is constantly "tap dancing" on top of them...I am sure that could be an irritant as well. Anyway, they were moved to another tank and put in the sand...it's a new tank but the water quality is probably better. For some reason, they also appear to be one of those corals that like dirty water. Ya'll keep your fingers crossed for me and I will let you guys know the outcome of it.
Thanks, Angel

 

[sandalscout]

Angel, you might actually try less light. There are some posts around here explaining that some elegance are from Indonesia, and these are collected at deeper depths and like lower lighting. The Australian Elegance are collected in shallower waters and therefore like brighter lights. There have even been some people keeping some for several years by attempting to make light frequency to the appropriate depths that they are collected in.

 

[DMBillies]

FWIW, our alkalinity got a bit low and the elegance seemed to be the first thing to respond negatively. I'm not sure it was the root cause, but perhaps the straw that broke the camels back.

From what I have heard, the survival rates of Aussie Elegance corals is better (for whatever reason). They are also harder to find since they just started to import them fairly recently.

 

[Angel2626]

Yea I had heard about the depth thing...read it somewhere. So I guess my next question would be, is there any way to tell the difference between Indonesian and Aussie Elegance? For one I think it's cool to know where they came from but it also could help if the lighting thing is correct.
Thanks, guys for all the input!
Angel

 

[Angel2626]

My guys are still not opening....they have even retracted more now. Prognosis looks dim for my beautiful boys.

 

[sandalscout]

You should be able to find some info in the LPS forum, but I think that colors are the biggest indicators of indo vs. aus. I believe that the more blue ones are from indo, but I'm sure there are other qualifiers.

 

[Angel2626]

Thanks SS. I have posted a thread there but haven't gotten any responses yet. I went to one of the LFS's here today and she gave me some stuff to do a dip with....maybe that will work.
Thanks, Angel