Goniopora. I need some help

[Nicolayo]

I'm a newbie on the forum and website. I have a reef tank for 5 years. I have a nano reef which is 70 liters(15.5 gallons) and 40 liters (8.8 gallons) of samp with hetamorfa algae. 2 species of coral Acropora (frags), a bird nest coral, 3 species montipora (frags), pagoda coral, fabia, goniopora, euphylia, elegance coral, and 3 types of zoanids and I think sinularia.
The fish are only clownfish (ocelaris), green carpet anemone, tube anemone, serpent star, and turbo snails.
I have anemones and clownfish for 5 years, LPS corals six months old since I have restarted the tank, SPS corals are 2 months old. All are feeling fine, except goniopora.
When I bought it, it was twice as big as it is now. Water parameters are normal.
PH - 8.0
KH - 9.5
Ca - 430
Mg - 1400
Phosphate 0.02-0.04
Nitrates - 0
I change the water every 2 weeks 20 liters (4,4 gallons).
Every day, I add Balling (Ca, KH, and salt without salt), Magnesium, Nirat-phosphate remover from "Red Sea".
Equipment: LED lighting -120 watt (56 white+56 blue), "Resun" chiller , "Deltek MCE300" skimmer and Corallia 900 wavemaker.
Coral feeding every 2-3 days with a mixture of frozen Cyclop-eeze, rotifers, red plankton, phytoplankton, microplankton and a liquid supplement on the basis of amino acids and other elements. Feeding directly all LPS from the syringe.
What is the problem and how can I solve it?
I read on the forum about goniopore (Justin Credabel), and the only thing I did not add was iron.
Over the past five years, this is my third goniopora. I am hoping not to lose that. Is the failure in the feeding? Maybe I should feed each day? Or something else?
Thanks in advance.

P.S. Based on the photo, does anyone know what kind of goniopa I have?
Photo is a half-year old, when I first brought the goniopora.

Equipment: LED lighting -120 watt (56 white+56 blue), "Resun" chiller , "Deltek MCE300" skimmer and Corallia 900 wavemaker.

 

[albano]

Over the past five years, this is my third goniopora. I am hoping not to lose that.

IMO, stop buying goniopora!...Except for a few 'captive bred' ORA pieces, they are doomed!


When people ask me the names of certain fish and corals in my tank, I tell them that I have only 2 names for them..."Doing great, I love it!" & "Not doing good, not gonna replace it!"

 

[LeLutinBanni]

I have 2 goni

1 ORA-like (same specie)
1 Blue gonio

The ORA-like is doing fine with or without food and he is growing.

The other one...:rolleye1:

I feed him EVERYDAY with 7 differents food. Still dying...

He is gonna die in few weeks and i will never get a new one

 

[Allmost]

Gonioporas are found in moddy waters.

we can stir the sand to make out tanks moddy ...

I have a blue one. growing new polyps,. I stir the sand daily.

 

[Nicolayo]

IMO, stop buying goniopora!...Except for a few 'captive bred' ORA pieces, they are doomed!

I read somewhere that 10-15 years ago elegans coral was too difficult to keep. But we, fans of reef tanks learn from our mistakes of others and our achievements are impressive. There is a positive experience in keeping goniopora very many fans and this article that inspired me to try another.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-10/nftt/index.php

When people ask me the names of certain fish and corals in my tank, I tell them that I have only 2 names for them..."Doing great, I love it!" & "Not doing good, not gonna replace it!"

If not for the experiments, we would not have learned so many corals. Today this is impossible, but tomorrow, based on the experience of enthusiasts (like me) it will be easy and something that you say today ....
"Not doing good, not gonna replace it!"
Tomorrow will tell ...
..."Doing great, I love it!"

I think that today we do not understand why one species of goniopora possible to keep and another does not.
It is possible that one species survives at the expense of photo-synthesis, and the other not, and they require feeding 3 time at day.
I do not know, here and invite you all to participate in discussions.

A lot of people talk about successful experiences in the goniopora keeping in a systems without a skimmer.
I have 2 nano-reef. In the 16 gallons is a powerful skimmer from Deltek, and 9 gallons with haetamorfa, partly as refujium. So a 9 gallon tank a lot of amphipods, which was not seen in 16 gallons.
Maybe I should try to move?
And yet, I would like to divide into smaller goniopora frags. Her round skeleton, can cut it into 4 parts (like watermelon), or it will kill him?

P.S. I am new at the forum, what means the ORA or ORA-like?

 

[Nicolayo]

Gonioporas are found in moddy waters.
we can stir the sand to make out tanks moddy ...
I have a blue one. growing new polyps,. I stir the sand daily.

Good idea, that with experience of successful in of detention goniopora tanks without skimming suggests that the idea of amphipods can be a positive result. Mixing the sand you pick up the organisms from the surface layer, which goniopora feed.

 

[albano]

I read somewhere that 10-15 years ago elegans coral was too difficult to keep. But we, fans of reef tanks learn from our mistakes of others and our achievements are impressive...

If not for the experiments, we would not have learned so many corals. Today this is impossible, but tomorrow, based on the experience of enthusiasts (like me) it will be easy...

Unless you are an expert/scientist/1%er (super devoted reefer) ...you're dreaming!

IMO...99% of HOBBYIST, will NEVER discover anything, and IF they did, it will most likely be useless, undocumented information!

So I will repeat MY OPINION for "enthusiasts (like you)"...if you've failed, multiple times at keeping an 'animal'...STOP buying it!...
Sure you may get LUCKY, and get 1 to survive (for a while)...but that 'success' does nothing good for the hobby, if it encourages others to try a hard to keep animal.

FWIW, I have been keeping Marine fish since 1973, and I can't tell you how many times I've heard a beginner, that has been successful at keeping a damsel alive for a week!, and is now convinced that he's ready to try a Moorish Idol!

 

[LeLutinBanni]

unless you are an expert/scientist/1%er (super devoted reefer) ...you're dreaming!

imo...99% of hobbyist, will never discover anything, and if they did, it will most likely be useless, undocumented information!

So i will repeat my opinion for "enthusiasts (like you)"...if you've failed, multiple times at keeping an 'animal'...stop buying it!...
Sure you may get lucky, and get 1 to survive (for a while)...but that 'success' does nothing good for the hobby, if it encourages others to try a hard to keep animal.

Fwiw, i have been keeping marine fish since 1973, and i can't tell you how many times i've heard a beginner, that has been successful at keeping a damsel alive for a week!, and is now convinced that he's ready to try a moorish idol!

+1

 

[shred5]

OMG there is so much fallacy going around this thread.
Goniopora stokesi is almost impossible to keep but most others are not. While goniopora is not for beginner’s most goniopora are able to be kept with the right conditions and the right care.. Some require lots of feeding and some don’t. In most cases food is the issue and getting a healthy specimen. Also it is a fallacy they come from muddy waters only a few do. Goniopora really are sensitive to current and light. Most do not like bright light and bleach really easy and is the cause of allot of deaths. Another is bacteria infections.

Placement can be tough. While I find most do not like bright light some do. Also some are nocturnal. Circulation is all over the board too. While none like really strong current some like it moderate to almost very little current for others.


Different gonis require different foods. I started using rods coral foods for mine because it has most of what I was feeding anyways. Good foods are cyclop-eeze, oyster eggs, frozen rotifiers, coral frenzy, and frozen bbs. Frozen rotifers, oyster eggs and cyclopeese seem to be the most widely taken. Best way to feed is shut off all circulation in the tank and let the food fall into it. I honestly treat my gonis almost like nps corals except I feed them a little less often. I recommend feeding gonis every other day minimum for most. Some like the ora seem to do ok with out direct feeding but seem to do better with feedings and others require more feedings.

I find amino acids and iron help them. Bactria should be promoted because I feel some of them feed on bacteria.

Again goniopora are not for beginners and if you are not willing to put in the time with them do not buy them, most are not a sit and forget about coral and are going to require special care..
Most people want to just toss them in a sps tank which is not the conditions this coral requires even though a few can do ok in those conditions.

 

[TheReeferer]

Unless you are an expert/scientist/1%er (super devoted reefer) ...you're dreaming!

IMO...99% of HOBBYIST, will NEVER discover anything, and IF they did, it will most likely be useless, undocumented information!

So I will repeat MY OPINION for "enthusiasts (like you)"...if you've failed, multiple times at keeping an 'animal'...STOP buying it!...
Sure you may get LUCKY, and get 1 to survive (for a while)...but that 'success' does nothing good for the hobby, if it encourages others to try a hard to keep animal.

FWIW, I have been keeping Marine fish since 1973, and I can't tell you how many times I've heard a beginner, that has been successful at keeping a damsel alive for a week!, and is now convinced that he's ready to try a Moorish Idol!

I simply disagree with this. Where does the Berlin method come from? Progress in fish keeping come from the hobby side. Scientists study how species survive in nature, very few care about how they survive or don't survive in captivity.

It's a bad policy to not keep difficult species. A clownfish was difficult to keep at one point...

 

[shred5]

I simply disagree with this. Where does the Berlin method come from? Progress in fish keeping come from the hobby side. Scientists study how species survive in nature, very few care about how they survive or don't survive in captivity.

It's a bad policy to not keep difficult species. A clownfish was difficult to keep at one point...

While I agree with this. I don’t think everyone should have access or be able to buy hard to keep species. No doubt more advances have come from this hobby than the scientific community. If it were not for this hobby there will be little interest in corals. If it were not for this hobby little would be know about propagation and more spawning of corals. More marine fish have been bred because of this hobby than in universities even though that is changing now. When I got in this hobby sps were considered impossible to keep. I do believe certain people in this hobby who have the experience and the time should have access too hard to keep corals and fish.

I myself sometimes worry about the fact I say goniopora are able to be kept except for goniopora stokesi. I worry that others see me and a few others keeping them and will try them and fail because they don’t have the experience. While they can be kept most require more care than what most people give there corals or want to give them. They are more like nps corals except for a few. They are extremely touchy to changes in conditions. I fail sometimes with them.

 

[sqwat]

feed oysterfeast,dont over skim,and test youre iron.i no you said you havent added iron so test it.i have a fuge and allot of macro and corals pluss a huge red ora goni.it wasnt growing and eather was my macro.i tested iron and it was non excistant.once added it was like a miracle.if not maybe youre goni is sick or just a tempermental one.mine eats whole mysis.he wasnt like that to begin with he was dead when i got him.i personally would only buy the red goni fromora wich i have and i also have a beautifull branchung alveopora from ora and both are growing amazingly.the alveopra doesnt eat mysis just loves oyater feast and live phyto,wich also is great for goni.they love phyto.,good luck.if you want a goni with a fighting chance spend the money and get a ora

 

[Mike_Noren]

FWIW, I have been keeping Marine fish since 1973

In that case you also remember that back in those days anything harder than clownfish and a Condylactis anemone was considered impossible to keep in an aquarium.

The hobby has advanced enormously.

 

[Nicolayo]

Unless you are an expert/scientist/1%er (super devoted reefer) ...you're dreaming!

IMO...99% of HOBBYIST, will NEVER discover anything, and IF they did, it will most likely be useless, undocumented information!

So I will repeat MY OPINION for "enthusiasts (like you)"...if you've failed, multiple times at keeping an 'animal'...STOP buying it!...
Sure you may get LUCKY, and get 1 to survive (for a while)...but that 'success' does nothing good for the hobby, if it encourages others to try a hard to keep animal.

FWIW, I have been keeping Marine fish since 1973, and I can't tell you how many times I've heard a beginner, that has been successful at keeping a damsel alive for a week!, and is now convinced that he's ready to try a Moorish Idol!

Believe me, I have a sincere respect for your experience (since 1973) and largely agree with you, but ...
Although I was interested in reef tank for a long time, I realized that it was very expensive, which I myself could not afford until it appeared the direction of the nano-reef. I'm from Israel and was one of the pioneers had launched Nano-Reef. I am familiar with many distinguished friends of the reef aquariumists, like almost all shops trading in goods of interest to me. 5 years ago, looked at me as a madman, not knowing how to have a reef with no equipment at many thousands of dollars. To date, I am familiar with a dozen enthusiasts who have a nano-reef perfect growing SPS.
First, you see, is sometimes difficult to determine at a glance what kind of goniopora you buy.
Secondly, it may still contain goniopora-stokesi failed, although I would not have claimed to believe that someone can be, but how?
The meaning of my post is a debate and exchange of ideas, rather than exhorting, as a professor of the student.
This is not a constructive approach to the problem.
Yes, this coral is almost impossible in the content for any reason. What? Possible problems:
- Not suitable kind of food. It is possible that some species goniopora photosynthetic and some not, and therefore food should be appropriate and the question of how much and how often to feed.
- Lack of a component in the water, potassium, iron, strontium, iodine, etc.
- Other problems ...
Until recently the market was not Cyclops-eeze, oyster eggs and has only recently been established nutritional value of these products. So, things are changing every day, and what was fiction yesterday, today, this does not seem to.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/12/inverts
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2005/10/aafeature2

 

[singold]

Goniopora Planulata is a good Gonioporea coral to start with. This is due to the fact it primarily derives its food photosynthetically via primary zooanthanellle production.