Leather coral trouble

[ashok sakthivel]

Every time I place a leather coral in my tank, it seems to disappear slowly in bits in the night. I am wondering if something is eating it. All the other corals (around 40 in number) are fine. When i remove it and place it in my other tank, it recovers in about a month. This is the second time I have placed the coral in the tank. Picture below. Any thoughts as to what could be causing this.

Ashok

 

[twerlinich]

It doesn't look diseased, it really does look like something is feasting on it. Are you successfully maintaining any other leathers in the tank -- or is this one your one and only? What types of inverts reside in your tank? (Any ornamental shrimp?)

 

[mfinn]

Two things come to mind when I see chunks like that missing out of a leather coral.
Is there are LPS corals near by that could be sending out sweeper tentacles?
And there are some leather coral eating nudibranchs that will do damage like that.
Might want to check very close. The ones I have see were about 1/2" long and were the same color as the coral.

 

[ashok sakthivel]

There is no other leather in the tank and it is not placed close to any other LPS which could send sweeper tentacles. Everytime I take it out and place it in my second tank it recovers and hence I dont think it could be nudibranches, besides there is another leather in the second tank that is doing fine.

I have three cleaner shrimps in the tank. Other than that there is a crab i've noticed which must have come with the LR. I've only seen him eat algae and some food which I feed. I am not sure if he is the culprit. The funny thing is that I don't have any problem with the other corals.

 

[Bello]

Could very well be the crab. Best to remove him. Use the bait in the glass trick.