Red Favites bleaching. More light or less?

[ritter6788]

I have this red favites pentagona that I've had for a few months now. It has been doing well, extending it's sweepers every night and feeding. I have been target feeding it about once a week as I do all my other LPS. Over the past 2 weeks I noticed the red areas on top of it are starting to turn white. The bottom part of the coral still has the dark red color but not as bright as when I first got it. It also get these white balls on it every night. I thought it was reproducing but this has been going on for over a month now every night so I'm wondering if the white balls are zooxanthellae (sp?) being expelled. It is on the sandbed of a 75 gallon tank directly under a 150 watt metal halide. I have some shade I can put it in or I can move it up on the rocks. Any suggestions welcome, thanks.
Here are the white things that appear on it at night, pic taken with lights out and flash.

 

[mike_cmu04]

I am guessing that it needs more light. Also what are your water parameters at?

 

[ritter6788]

Water params are good all other corals are great sps included.
Salinity 1.026
Amm. 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates and phosphates are undetectable
Cal. ~ 480
Alk. 9
Mag. ~ 1300
I have other LPS on the sand that are doing great, green favia, frogspawn, 3 trachys.

 

[mike_cmu04]

I would move it up i am guessing not enough light then.

 

[Sheol]

It seems with Favid corals, those that have brighter colors, other than green, seem to like light more. But I don't think that is a All-or-None thing. You'll have to try different spots. And feed it!

Sincerely,
Matthew

 

[organism]

Less light! I used to have one of those, they like low light. Anytime you have a coral turning white there's too much light hitting it or there's some other issue in the tank, if it's turning brown that's when there's not enough light.

It's not a Favites pentagona btw, I forget the species but it's similar...

 

[ritter6788]

Ok, thanks for the replies. It was bought as a favites pentagona from divers den so that's where I got the name from but I know they are not the all knowing source at all. I did some reading about how some of the war corals preferred shade so that is what got me to asking the question. Don't get me wrong it's not horrible looking but I can tell from experience that this corals is not happy where it is. Looks like it's experiment time!

 

[organism]

I'd start with experimenting by leaving it in a cave or under an overhang for a few weeks

If you give it more light you're for sure going to kill it...

 

[ritter6788]

I'd start with experimenting by leaving it in a cave or under an overhang for a few weeks

...

Already done my friend, thanks for the replies. :beer:

 

[aakinego]

Weird, I've never seen a favia do that before. I don't think its a light issue though. It doesn't have those white spots when the light is on?

 

[ritter6788]

It doesn't have those white spots when the light is on?

Never. It starts doing it immediately after the actinics go off and some of them are still there in the morning before the lights come on. Once the actinics come on in the morning they are all gone. It has done this every night since after the first few days I had this coral. The sweeper tentacles on this are insane.

 

[Sheol]

I've had Favia simply morph colors for various reasons, in my Reef. Not bleaching, but it happens pretty often.

Matthew

 

[ritter6788]

It's been a few months since I've been trying to find the right lighting for this coral. Maybe it's just not meant to be. I shaded it for a long time and the color turned really drab and almost brown. I slowly moved it out into the light, but not direct light, and the green part of the coral is turning brighter but the red part is turning white. This is the only coral in my tank that is giving me problems right now. I have been feeding it a couple times a week, like all my other LPS and it eats well and has crazy sweeper tentacles at night. I haven't seen the little white balls on it in a while.

 

[ritter6788]

I stumbled across my own thread I forgot about. The coral looks so good I forgot it even had color problems. It's one of my favorite corals in the tank now. The only real change I made was switching to leds in April of last year. The coral is on the sand and looking great and growing. I have not seen the white spots on it in a long time. I never really figured out what was going on with that.