Fungia dying - help please!

[overCee]

I purchased a fantastic looking orange fungia from Premium Aquatics over the weekend (they're great, I'm sure this is my fault).

After drip acclimating it for over an hour I placed it in my tank. By Monday it was fully inflated and it ate some mysis that landed on it. Last night when I got home from work it was fairly deflated but before I went to bed it looked fine.

In the darkness of the tank before I left for work today I thought I saw some skeleton.

Tonight when I got home I saw that the coral is completely deflated (skin on skeleton) and I can see white down in its mouth and elsewhere.

My parameters are as follows: pH: 8.1; Alk: 2.5 meq/L; nitrites: ~0.1; nitrates: 0.2 (Seachem test); nitrates <0.2 (Salifert test, it is barely pink, definitely not 0, but below the lowest gradation on the test), ammonia: 0, sg: 1.026; temp 81.5 F.

It is likely the nitrates, but if it isn't what else could it be? I am wondering if my lighting schedule is hurting it. Premium appears to keep their corals under metal halides for an unknown (to me) period of time. In order to make up for the loss of intensitiy I upped my Coralife 96W Quad bulb fixture lighting to about 14 hours per day. COuld this be hurting as well as the nitrates.

Thanks for your help. I am on my to the RO machine at Meijer Grocery for some water to do a water change tonight. Any other advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[overCee]

Oh yeah, calcium is 275 ppm and I was planning on adding calcium chloride to increase that this week.

Here are some pics of the coral in question, taken just a few minutes ago...

 

[Twitterbait]

Can you show us a full shot of the coral. they usually don't inflate during the day IME. It looks like the short tentacles are out so it looks ok from here.

 

[overCee]

Here is a shot of the deflated coral.

Here is a shot of the coral from a couple days ago when it was looking much better.

 

[ouccmich]

I would say to fix your calcium and give it some time...but I'm no expert....

 

[ski1297]

I do not talk a lot on RC as you can see but Ouccmich is a good guy so I will give you my $.02. The water change will help. The calcium is low but I do not think that would kill it. But you should try to get that up. How is the flow? I would run the lights for about 10-12 hrs. Its a new coral and it might just need time.

 

[Twitterbait]

both good advice. it does not look like a big issue yet. watch out for expanding white.

 

[ski1297]

A link with some good info: http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=1911&N=0

 

[ChrisPrusha]

I don't believe it's your nitrates. Flow might be an issue, and you do want to raise your calcium. Just keep an eye on it for now.

Do these guys need to be target fed? Or do they get what they need from lights? How long has your tank been set up?

 

[ski1297]

They need a mix of target and light.

 

[overCee]

The tank has been setup for over 6 months, however I did just move it in the last month.

From what I understand, the fungia gets many nutrients from the light, but will eat as well. I have been feeding the tank mysis and some of it does get down to the fungia (it's at the bottom on the sand) which I have seen it eat.

On an interesting side note, I just tested my water before I put any salt in it. Apparently the Culligan RO system at Meijer Grocery isn't working properly because it has a level of 0.2 mg/L of nitrate. Otherwise the water is fine, 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia, 0 alk, 7.0 pH, and an sg of 1.000.

 

[ChrisPrusha]

I wonder if the recent move has caused a mini cycle. I see that your nitrites aren't zero, and as you know any nitrites are trouble.

Water changes are all good, imo. Good luck, and keep us posted!

 

[ski1297]

The 0.2 mg/L of nitrate is not good stay away from that. That is good that it did eat.

 

[ChrisPrusha]

Do I know you from somewhere, ski?

 

[ski1297]

Just this other funny reef forum. I would stay away if I were you just a bunch of goofballs over there.

 

[ouccmich]

do i know you guys from somewhere? am I'm not a guy...i'm a gal...not that it matters. Just having a lot of people refer to "him" when referring to me that's all.....lol

 

[ski1297]

I am so sorry ouccmich.

 

[revance]

overCee, when I spoke to you earlier I forgot to ask... how long had the lights been on at the time you noticed it? Is that what it looks like at night when it contracts? <-- others feel free to answer that too.

As you know, I have never had a fungia, so don't know alot about them. However if that is what it looks like at night, it might have closed up early. Especially if it was towards the end of a very long photoperiod. I have a fairly long photoperiod on my tank and my frogspawn always closes up a few hours before lights out... almost like "I've had enough, turn off already". Perhaps PA has a very short photoperiod that it has become accustomed to.

Again, I don't know if that picture you posted is normal for a closed up fungia at night, but just sharing my experiences.

 

[horkn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7119449#post7119449 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ChrisPrusha
Do I know you from somewhere, ski?

slinger huh?

i am in thiensville, but the parentals live outside of allenton.

as far as the fungia. they usually do not expand during the day. keep us posted.


and the best thing you can do is get your own rodi unit. i did not too long ago(after over a year with unknown quality grocery store ro water), and my tank is better already by doing that.

 

[roktsintst]

I have a neon green plate coral that i have never gotton to inflate and there is white along the ends of it. what does that mean? any suggestions to get it to inflate. it looks great under actinic lighting but no polyps come out.