Sun coral??

[treetopflyn]

I wanted a new challange so I picked one up this weekend and I have seen it open yet. Any advice on getting it to open so I can feed it?

 

[thedragon]

Turn off your lights

 

[treetopflyn]

I've looked at 11pm 12pm 2am and 5am and I have yet to see it out

 

[reefsahoy]

Tease it by turning off pumps and spot feeding with some liquid food.

 

[Gillguy]

Place it under a ledge or cave away from current. Right before the lights go out, feed the tank a meaty food and it should open up within an hour.

 

[Lacy]

I've looked at 11pm 12pm 2am and 5am and I have yet to see it out

That's dedication. : ))

 

[treetopflyn]

That's dedication. : ))

Checked at 1:00am and 3:00am last night. Still not open :-(

 

[Reefer54]

training it with food at the same time everday sometimes for 2 weeks +- is a proven method. they are fickle until you get them trained. religious dedication, but worth it if you ca get them to eat. if you do not see them open at the store or if the LFS cannot entice the feeders out, they are often in a state of starvation and duress.=== plump polyps are good, sunken in, withdrawn polyps are not. think of a closed polyp like a skinny or fat polyp....fat polyps good, skinny polyps not as much.

and of course, that does not go to say that they can not be saved or nourished back, but once they have withdrawn, they are far more difficult to coax into eating again.

 

[elviraveloz]

I bought one a couple months ago and I can tell it was in a state of starvation when I bought it (had it 60% off regular price). I decided to manually feed it every two days. I removed the bottom part of a 16 oz water bottle, then place the bottle inside the tank with the coral inside ( dig some part of bottle in sand) I usually removed the bottle after 12 hours. It took me around seven weeks for coral to start opening. But once start opening I can tell you the coral is a real beauty. I supplement the water with a cup of phytoplankton a day, rotifers, live brine shrimp and homemade Roger's recipe blend.

 

[NANoUf]

If you haven't already glued the coral down - I used to take mine out and place in a separate Tupperware with a copious amount of food for a few hours at the time I would want it open in the tank. After a week or two it would open up at that time. Also practical if you have a small tank and at worried about putting too many nutrients into the system.

 

[treetopflyn]

Been feeding every evening outside the tank at the same time. Looks like it wants too open but hasn't yet.

 

[elviraveloz]

It may take several weeks, be patient.

 

[EllieSuz]

I kept mine is a clear deli container that could be lifted out of the tank without exposing the coral to the air. Then I would squirt some thawed frozen food into the container and wait for it to open. In time, it would respond immediately and I was able to remove it from the container and give it a permanent place in the tank. I've had it for years now and feed it every two or three days. As mentioned above, they can be trained to open up at the same time every day.