Is my gorgonian photosynthetic or not?

[ritter6788]

This is my 1st gorgonian and I don't have a lot of information on it. Does is require light or will I just have to feed it. I read some about it on the internet but I seem to get conflicting answers. It's yellow and purpleish with white tentacles. Thanks in advance for any replies.

 

[uhuru]

That is non-photo. It is one of the easier ones, but still difficult compared to photosynthetics. You need to provide appropriate foods, strong flow and good water quality. You can feed Fauna Marin gorgonian foods, mixed with frozen cyclopeeze and fed several times a day. I would shoot for 10 small feedings per day.

 

[ritter6788]

Thanks uhuru

 

[euromomtx]

Photo os kind of blurry but it looks like a yellow finger gorgonian (Diodogorgia nodulifera)
Here's mine:

Does it look like that?
Frozen prawn eggs seem to be a good size for it

 

[ritter6788]

Yes that is it. Is cyclopeeze a good food for it?

 

[uhuru]

They will eat it sometimes but a lot of times it is too big, so they spend a lot of energy trying to squish it into their mouths. Something smaller like rotifers and bbs will work, and fauna marin Ultra Seafan + Ultra Min F.

 

[small alien]

Gee, only ten feedings per day. That doesn't sound at all difficult. Oi!

 

[ritter6788]

Gee, only ten feedings per day. That doesn't sound at all difficult. Oi!

I can promise I will not be able to feed 10 times per day

 

[uhuru]

You can get an auto feeder, and have that dose the FM Ultra Seafan, Ultra Min F and Ultra Clam into a feeding ring so it doesn't get skimmed out on the surface. You should direct some flow to the ring to help the food sink, otherwise it just collects and builds a film on the top. Then, when you can do it manually, feed frozen cyclopeeze, bbs, blended meaty foods, etc...

 

[small alien]

sounds like great advice. interesting topic.

 

[euromomtx]

uhuru
I have been feeding the Fauna Marin stuff but recently stopped because it jsut result in such a major cyano outbreak that it ends up more damaging than helpful.
Do you dose the UltraLife and if so does it help with the pollution factor?

 

[uhuru]

Hey Karin, I do use ultra life, but I don't think it can truly solve your cyano problem just because of how resilient cyano can be. I would manually remove it, and do a prolonged lights out period. Then you have to figure out how to keep it from coming back! Lots of flow, increased filtration and water changes.