Sun coral not getting healthier?

[jarrod13]

We've had this sun coral a few months now and my gf has been taking it out of the tank (it's in a open container so we can remove it easily) to feed it everyday, which of course gets skipped every once in a blue moon. We've been feeding it mysis which it seems to like because it always eats it, although it takes almost a hour from start to finish. When we first got them they were not full and lush like I see them on here so that's why I told her we needed to feed them this way until they were completely healthy again, well it seems as they're getting worse. Should I feed something different? Any help is appreciated.

When we first got them

Feeding

Now, this is the most they've come out in a while

 

[Reef Frog]

They look to be in a "post eating" state and look healthy to me. Do the polyps fully extend? When they do, that indicates they are looking to feed. When full the polyps may be partially retracted as in your pics. At least in my experience - see what others say.

IMO feeding every day with mysis is too much. Might be ok with low volume plankton foods like cyclopseeze. There have been reports on this forum of food rotting inside the polyps due to over feeding. I'd feed perhaps 3 times per week and see if they don't expand more fully.

If they are eating well you no longer need to feed in the dish.

 

[alan.reef]

try to put little food in the water to attract them, feed when you see their polyp.

 

[jarrod13]

No they never fully extend, maybe half way but the yellow tentacles barely come out.

The fish get fed first and once the polyps start expanding they are taken out and fed. I'll try to feed something smaller, what would be the best thing to feed them now?

 

[leveldrummer]

Once the polyps start to come out you pull the coral out of the tank? Your probably stressing the thing out! Feed the fish and if the polyps start to extend, leave them alone and let them open. If the open enough to accept food then dust then with a turkey baster. Then put a 2 liter bottle over it to give it time to eat.

 

[jarrod13]

Ok that makes sense, I won't move them anymore. I'm actually in the process of building a feeding tube with half a water bottle on the end so we don't have to keep pulling it out.

What is the BEST food to feed them? Cyclopeeze? Brine shrimp? Rods food?

 

[Reef Frog]

The foods you list are all fine. I like mysis personally as they do double duty as one of the best fish foods.

Cyclopseeze has its place & I suspect provides coloring agents. But it's too small to be the only food. And lots of it won't reach the polyps, so if you feed it its best to have something in the tank that will eat it. If you have small fish they aill gobnle up any excess. You don't want high amounts of uneaten food in the tank. If you feed the fish chclopseez during the day & the sun coral is open, shoot some on the polyps. This kind of conditions them to open during the day when you can enjoy them.

 

[Mark9]

Ok that makes sense, I won't move them anymore. I'm actually in the process of building a feeding tube with half a water bottle on the end so we don't have to keep pulling it out.

I bought this, makes feeding my corals WAY easier.

Kent Marine 00856 SeaSquirt Feeder

 

[SantaMonica]

I was excited thinking that you found a new feeder of some sort.

 

[Mark9]

nope, just an extra long baster, no more hands in tank, hate that.

 

[noy]

jarrod
Your sun coral actually is in a bit of rough shape. The flesh (coenosarc) between the tentacles has receded (you can see the bare rock underneath). A healthy bushy-type (ploccid vs. branching) sun coral (I think yours is a coccinea) should have continuous flesh joining all the different tentacles/corallites. You probably got it from the LFS in that shape. There is no reason you shouldn't be able to turn it around though with regular feedings (I actually buy specimens in that shape at a discount from the LFS). An hour to feed is way too long - I have an tank full of sun corals/dendros/rhizo's and it doesn't take me an hour.

you may want to try the following and you shouldn't have to take them out of the tank to feed them. Flow is important to get them to open. Regular feeding at specific time is important - evenings are better. I find that they very responsive to brine shrimp.

http://www.reefhobbyistmagazine.com/archives/vol_7/issue28/pages/45.htm

 

[jarrod13]

Thanks everybody!

Noy, we bought it in that condition and thank you for the explanation.

I made a feeding tube that sits over the coral and it seems to be working pretty well. I've noticed them getting healthier since we're not removing them anymore, and I'm going to put a rock under it so it's not directly in the sand also.

Check it out

 

[DBLeite]

that's very clever.
What exactly did you use to make it?

 

[jarrod13]

Just a clear plastic tube and a water bottle. I need to change out the water bottle for a bigger one, I think I'm going to use one of those square Fiji bottles, the one that's on there now is just a smidge too tight

 

[TakedaMaru]

depressed coralls is a very common problem with corals for the place where I live now .
All animals , especially non-photosynthetic come in a very horrible , pitiful state . Therefore, fast treatment and fattening - it's main job snd skill for aquarists my country.
My sun corals grow perfectly painted with feeding pellets Fauna Marin LPS (i cut each on two-3 parts) ( you should try, this is- inexpensive ) . Even those corals, which received from sellers in a terrible depressed - come alive and healthy for 1-2 week . Food reaction and dehiscence of the polyps corals i do using JBL coral fluid, mysids also give, but it better to be soak in 1-2 drops of seachem reef plus. Note: depressed sun corals must be not overfeeded (1 granule to 3-4 polyps)

 

[jarrod13]

Thanks takedamaru, I'll try that.

Not much progress yet but they do seem much happier with not being pulled from the tank, and I re-did my feeding tube with a Fiji water bottle so it gives the coral a little more room to extend.

 

[djberg]

that tube is genius! i'm gonna steal that idea and use it to feed my sebae that any time i feed my peppermints steal it's food.

 

[jarrod13]

Thank you!

Are you referring to a sebae anemone? That would need to be one big tube if you are lol

 

[djberg]

he's pretty little right now, all shriveled up about 5" across

 

[jarrod13]

Gotcha. Maybe try one of those big square jugs they sell juice and stuff in. I made the round one first and now it's a square bottle and I like it much better because it's more stable, it will even stand up by itself outside of the tank which is nice for storage