Sun Coral Help!

[shandy_say]

Hi! I recently acquired 2 sun corals. One has a more protruding skeletal system than the other one. Not sure if they're the same. 1st few days the flatter sun would be open while the other sun coral was not open. Tried feeding it a blend of market shrimp, cyclopeeze, marine snow, and seachems amino acids. However, after a few days, the flatter (more open polyps) sun coral has started to deteriorate while the other sun coral (which was not open a few days back) have started to open up. I am confused as to why this is happening. Below is a picture of the 2 sun corals.

Sun Coral # 1

Before

After

Sun Coral # 2

Before

After

I have seen Sun Coral # 1 open when I start feeding and close up when they have food and extend again after swallowing the mixture.

Sun Coral # 2 remains open and never closes either before or after feeding.


Phosphates <0.1
Nitrates = 0
Temp = 25-28C
Ammonia = 0

I feed it every night around 10pm.

Hope someone can help! Thanks in advance!

 

[dendro982]

I would check, if the flow is similar for both sun corals, and make 1-2 container feedings (removing coral to a separate container for a feeding, then returning back). Placing food onto mouths may work too, they may try eat even without tentacles extended.

I don't like when I see open mouths... Could be ammonia spike within hours after feeding and you missed it.
Temperature requirements should be similar for both.

Cyclop-eeze more for making them open for a feeding, main food is like mysis shrimp or mouth-sized chopped prawn or other meaty seafood.

 

[shandy_say]

Hi! Thanks! Both Sun Corals are in the same tank. I feed each and every polyp a blended mixture of shrimp meat, cyclopeeze, marine snow and Seachem's Amino Acids. I don't want to remove them from the main tank when I feed them mainly because I don't want to stress them out even further by moving them. Last night did the same routine and I got the same reaction. I turn the filtration system off except for the skimmer to allow the food to settle on the polyps so they can catch it even without extending their tentacles. So far the best reaction i have gotten was from the sun coral that had elongated stalks on each polyps. The flatter sun coral seems to be reacting the same way. Aside from the previously receded polyps, no other polyps have receded which hopefully means that they have started to feed even just a little bit.