Is this a healthy elegance?

Newreefer2107

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Hello, new to marine tanks....had mine up and running for 3 months now. Bought an elegance from a LFS about 3 weeks ago and I'm just wondering if it appears healthy. Read quite a bit about them and I believe it depends where it's from and they can be rather difficult to keep. It seems happy, sticky tentacles that grab bits of shrimp from my tweezers and quickly manoeuvres to one of its 9 mouths. I'm just concerned that the tentacles don't seem as long as in pictures of healthy ECs. It also appears to be asexually reproducing....there is a tiny skeleton forming off one side just uner the tentacles. Can't see it when it's extended but will try get a photo later this evening when it closes up a bit.
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Looks healthy to me and has very nice color. The growth on the outside of the skeleton is probably a barnacle or something, I would scrape it off.
 
Looks healthy to me and has very nice color. The growth on the outside of the skeleton is probably a barnacle or something, I would scrape it off.
It's not on the skeleton, it's hanging from the edge of the disk just under the tentacles and looks exactly like the elegance skeleton....just tiny, under an inch across. I'll upload a photo of it later when I can see it

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It's not on the skeleton, it's hanging from the edge of the disk just under the tentacles and looks exactly like the elegance skeleton....just tiny, under an inch across. I'll upload a photo of it later when I can see it

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Sorry really bad quality photo....but that's the little skeleton hanging off the lip of the polyp
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I totally gave up on those corals


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This is my first......hopefully it doesn't make me give up on them as they are beautiful! However.....I've given up in leathers (yeah...I know....the hardiest of corals!) I cannot keep them alive for more than 4 weeks.....no idea why! Everything else I have does really well

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Elegance are typically found on the sand. Looks nice and healthy to me also.

Does it have a cone shaped bottom? If it does, put it on your sandbed deep enough so the polyps lay out on the sand when open.
 
Elegance are typically found on the sand. Looks nice and healthy to me also.

Does it have a cone shaped bottom? If it does, put it on your sandbed deep enough so the polyps lay out on the sand when open.
I did have it on the sand, but it kept eating passing snails! It's on rockwork now, but have ensured it has plenty space to expand and not touch anything. It's has more of a long meandering skeleton rather than a cone shape

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I did have it on the sand, but it kept eating passing snails! It's on rockwork now, but have ensured it has plenty space to expand and not touch anything. It's has more of a long meandering skeleton rather than a cone shape

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Yup they are definitely known to eat a passing snail.

If you choose to keep it on the rockwork, I would suggest a flat rock where it can lay its polyps out and glue the hell out of it. These are pretty fragile corals and even a small fall can cause it to have an unrecoverable injury. Another reason most of us keep them on the sandbed besides that's where they are typically found.
 
Yup they are definitely known to eat a passing snail.

If you choose to keep it on the rockwork, I would suggest a flat rock where it can lay its polyps out and glue the hell out of it. These are pretty fragile corals and even a small fall can cause it to have an unrecoverable injury. Another reason most of us keep them on the sandbed besides that's where they are typically found.
It's been reef putty'd in place! Seems to be happy and extending where it is, so will observe for now and move it if things change

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Well I have since moved the elegance back into the sand bed, it wasn't extending fully up on the rockwork so moved it back down. It seems really happy again. The 'baby' is looking like it won't be long till it drops! Better photo this time
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Well I have since moved the elegance back into the sand bed, it wasn't extending fully up on the rockwork so moved it back down. It seems really happy again. The 'baby' is looking like it won't be long till it drops! Better photo this time
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Honestly the elegance doesn't look to be that happy. Elegance corals have very long tentacles when in optimum health. Long term survival rates with Elegance corals are pretty dismal..


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Honestly the elegance doesn't look to be that happy. Elegance corals have very long tentacles when in optimum health. Long term survival rates with Elegance corals are pretty dismal..


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That's it retracted quite far, its tentacles are around 2+ inches during the day

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That's it retracted quite far, its tentacles are around 2+ inches during the day

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How is the coral doing? If you could, post and updated pic. I'd love to see any progress. It makes me happy when I see an elegance that has survived in a tank. I used to work at a LFS when I was in high school about a decade ago and would refuse to allow the owner to get in elegance corals bc all they would do is die in ours and customer tanks. I feel this is one of those corals that are better left in the wild. I have heard that Australian elegance corals have a better success rate though.


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How is the coral doing? If you could, post and updated pic. I'd love to see any progress. It makes me happy when I see an elegance that has survived in a tank. I used to work at a LFS when I was in high school about a decade ago and would refuse to allow the owner to get in elegance corals bc all they would do is die in ours and customer tanks. I feel this is one of those corals that are better left in the wild. I have heard that Australian elegance corals have a better success rate though.


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Sure, I'm working away from home at the moment, but I'll get some photos when I'm home. It seems happy, no receeding tissue, good colour and no swelling of the polyps. It is extending better now it's back on the sand bed. I believe it is an Aussie the to the shape and colour of the skeleton

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not the first pics, but the last few you posted look healthy.
3 weeks is a very short time, if aussie make pass 4 months, you should be good. if indo, 1 year will be a safe mark.
 
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