Not opening?

[chrisstie]

I wouldn't think I'd be one to be asking this question myself- my zoos have always behaved!

I recently have found my zoos wont open due to those weird little hard tubes that shoot out silly string that aggrivates them. There was one growing between the mat out of a piece of rubble onf of my colonies was attached to!

Well I got rid of that one... but while they were shut theres this faint red tint covering parts of the polyps. It isn't cyano I can't swish it away and don't have an outbreak of that crap in my tank anymore.

It is more.. part of the polyp than anything growing on it - and with my slightly bowed tank its SO hard to get a closeup pics of this.

Does it sound like any common zoa affliction?

 

[chrisstie]

Well with no replies I searched for more information to try to see what I could do without really knowing the cause for my closure.

Today I went to the LFS and the only lugols solution they had was Kents. I plan to do a dip by removing the frags from my tank and doing it in a separate container. Any advice using this brand? i realize it isn't as potent as.. "the" lugols brand.

Also I have noticed many amphipods running around my zoos at night.. can I give them something else to eat besides my zoos? i think they are part of what is causing them to close.

If there is algae growing on them hopefully the lugols solution will kill it and leave the zoo alone, and there will be no reason for the pods to come and feast on the algae - so long as they don't eat my zoas after.

I'm at a loss besides attempting this. I will do it tomorrow and post my results!

 

[berns]

well first of all the tube thing shooting out string was a Eunice worm that throws out a web to collect particles and then draw the web back in to eat anything on it, its a harmless worm to zoas in that it wont kill or try to kill them but i guess if polyps around the tube worm are continually hit with a web then this agigtation may irratate the hell out of them (i have a pink colony with about 5 tube eunice worms spreading their nets and the zoa polyps around them seem to be use to it and dont close, i think they nick food particles from it lol so put up with it)

as far as red/brown type coating to parts of polyps/head coupled with polyps not opening is not a good sign, a dip may or may not help but id suggest firstly using a turkey baster and blowing water over and in between the polyps of zoas a few times to see it a little cleaning may help, zoas close for periods of time regular but its not common, so keep an eye on them and give them a blow now and then but if they stay closed all the time and the red/brown coating develops more then id possible try the dip route see if that can jolt them back to life, but i would always suggest turkey baster action first as removing zoas for dips may only weaken/stress already troubled zoas further, also keep an eye on other zoas if you have any.

also a picture speaks a thousand words so would be of great help

 

[chrisstie]

I have been trying the turkey baster thing for a while.. I like to dust off most corals. I think it stirs up food and other particles ot get filtered out and have a cleaner tank.. no use =\ It reminds me of red turf algae growing ever ever so slightl on it - and an occasional white spot but its SO tiny. Pics are hard ot get because the front of my tank is curved and it totally messes with macro shots =\

I will try for a pic when i get it out of the tank for a dip.. Didn't have time today

I have 2-3 small colonies near each other with one primarily more closed than others but i see a similar thing happening to the ones nearby.

I wonder if the.. what you calla eunice worm (i've heard them called a few things) is making a thread and they typicallya ren't bothered by it, if their condition is being aggrivated by it in the sense that something is already irritating it so its just like "leave me alone i am closing up now!"

 

[saltyVT]

How are things going?? I am having the exact same trouble. Only my yellow polyps are having the problems. They seem to be shrinking. A bunch of them have that redish brown slime on them. They have started to melt away, I have lost at least 5 and its looking bad. I did recently upgrade to MH from PC.

 

[chrisstie]

I noticed the size of polyps has been shrinking too. In the last few days I've done 2 dips.

After the first dip - the only lugols I could get was Kents so I'm using 1 gal old sw i take out for water changes and add 40 drops of the stuff.

After the first one in my blowpop colony a few more polyps opened up, no luck on my pink ones

When I placed them back into the tank I put them on the side of the tank where my sand seems completely unaffected by this red stuff. It isn't cyano, could it be turf?

I did dip #2 last night but haven't gone downstairs\lights aren't on just yet so I'll let you know how it is going.
I feel good that im not the only one out there with this issue - I can see where one frag is glued to the plug that this red stuff is growing on the glue too ><

 

[saltyVT]

Update????? I treated for a bad flatworm infestation and it seemed to really clean things up. I also changed my carbon to rid the tank of any toxins. How are your doin?