Freaky droopy candy cane coral

[Brian DeGolier]

I have a light irredescent blue candy cane that seems to have out grown it's stalks. The polyps are huge and are literally drooping down, the skin is starting to wear so thin that it is almost becoming transparent and appears that it may tear or pop at any time. I feel that it may be time to cut the branched stalk but I have been told to leave it alone. I touched the bottom of the droop and felt what appeared to be some kind of sharp skeletal matter inside, just like when one dies and the top pointed stalk is exposed. It has looked like this for several months now and getting worse but the tenticles are out at it's usual time and I have not directly fed it since I am afraid to contribute to it's obesity. The stalk is rather thin and there is evidense that worms have bored into it and created their calcified tubes

The water is good, the calcium fluctuates from 320 to 420 PPM at times, due to laziness. The dKh is good. The aquarium is a 55 gal. with T5's of 216 watts. The coral is placed about 8" from the water's surface

I have taken pictures of it, and attempted to upload but the file size is way too large and cannot figure out how to reduce it. If anyone would like me to email them the pics, I would be happy to do so. Any input would help. thanks. Brian

 

[Moonstream]

any pics? they are far better then any desciption.

 

[Brian DeGolier]

Freaky Candy Cane Coral

Freaky Candy Cane Coral

Here's a pic, thanks to my wife. Hope this works.

 

[OnoIgotICH]

wow..

 

[gman0526]

Search for polyp extrusion on RC or Google.

 

[Moonstream]

hum. um... wow?

 

[JJ21]

looks like a heart... :lol:

 

[SeaMac2]

Elephantitis?

 

[ros_sco]

I had the same thing happen a while back. The pieces that were drooping eventually fell off and new heads grew from them. I still have the colonies it made. Kind of weird and it hasn't happened since.

 

[flyyyguy]

Ive had my neon drop a few heads bfore as well. Just recnetly one of them finally started growing a skeleton.

Mine more just looked like it "dripped" the heads off wihtout any real swelling going on. Yours looks like elephantitus.

 

[Jah2707]

Those have got to be the ugliest candy canes I have ever seen!

 

[vegaskid11]

I have a candy cane that split a new head and then the new head sort of dropped over like that and then attached itself to the skelton of a dead connecting branch head. It was srange to watch it unfold. That head has since split multiple times now.

 

[Brian DeGolier]

I appreciate your responses and will wait and see what happens. It appears that it has an acute case of poly extrusion elephantitus and I wil research it more. Thanks again.
BD

 

[sarahdae]

looks like a male body part....and I agree, thats so ugly I'd take it out. Painful to look at if you ask me. LOL

 

[rob.holbrook]

My candy cane did that a few months ago, took about two weeks then it had grown two more heads and repaired what looked terrible.

I wouldnt worry about it, I think it is a way of reproducing.

good luck it sucks watching that happen but when it is all done you will have more candy cane then you started with.

HTH

 

[eshagha]

Looks cool. I think it's fine.

 

[DawnOctopus]

Poor thing! It does look like it's in pain!

 

[BeesGoneWild]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12163025#post12163025 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SeaMac2
Elephantitis?

exactly what i was thinking lol. Kinda a neat oddity

 

[SWaquariast]

That looks like trumpet coral with all these problems but it still also looks like candy cane

do you add iodine, calcium, and strontium/magnesium the elements are very importent to the polyp itself and its skeletol development.

 

[jadams7]

very odd, nice thread, I hope mine never end up like that!