Toadstool leather won't extend polyps. WHY?

[Bnaum85]

Hello all. I've been reading posts for a while now but i haven't come across anyone with the exact same issue I'm dealing with so here is goes:

I bought a great looking toadstool leather from the LFS about 8 weeks ago. I have experimented with lighting (intensity, photo period), flow and placement with no improvement. The leather shed around the end of the first week. It looks pretty healthy as far as I can tell but the polyps never extend. The points where the polyps should extend from retract at night but the stalk and cap keep their shape through the night.

I have been burning through my test supplies trying to catch a swing in the results but nothing. I don't think my lemon chromis or my purple firefish goby are pestering it, but I have seen my scarlet skunk cleaner shrimp walk across it a few times. Any thoughts?

14g biocube (up for 4 months)
temp: 22.5C morning to 24.5C @ lights out
pH: 8.2 morning to 8.3 @ lights out
dKH: 10-12
sg: 1.024
PC 10,000K and actinic (~8hr/day)
moonlight LED 2hrs before and after main lights
+1 powerhead
50% water change per week, top off with RO/DI as needed

 

[Dapg8gt]

50% water change per week? Are you matching the parameters exactly? Including temp? IMO I've had a tyree that goes through its phases and stays shut after shedding for a while maybe a week or a little more.. FWIW mine doesn't like high light or high flow it's off in the back corner and loving, it.. Good luck hope It opens up for you. Are you sure your cleaner shrimp isn't irritating it? It's weird that it's just not the tips opening up.

Just my opinion that you didn't ask for =) but That big of a water change might be causing the parameters to swing wildly enough to have it not be happy. Guessing you run skimmer less and that's the reason for the large water change but I would slow down on the volume or spread it out throughout the week. I ran a 12g nano cube for about a year successfully and usually would do no more than 25% usually just a weekly 10-15% but I'm sure checking in the nano section will give you some insight on what most guys do for that as it's been years since I had the nano.. .

Oh And welcome to reef central =).

 

[Bnaum85]

Thanks for the insight. I think I should clarify the 50% wc, it is actually 25% (3.5/14) but the rocks and sand take up a lot of the usable volume so I'm not sure which way to look at it. I use water from a box because I can't install a RO/DI system in my apartment and the box water always tests perfect. I take RO/DI water from my lab for top offs but it's too much of a hassle to lug around a 5 gallon bucket to and from work frequently enough to make my own water.

Back to the 50%, do you think I could be wiping out an nutrients and/or trace elements with such a large volume change? I thought I was playing it safe with the large water change because I know how unforgiving small tanks can be when it comes to the build up of harmful chemicals. I add trace elements after each water change and dose phytoplankton biweekly. All my other corals are thriving. My little duncan is growning 4 new heads!

I will take a look at the nano forum but if anyone has and ideas I would be very grateful. thanks.

 

[Bnaum85]

So I moved the toadstool down to the bottom of the tank and turned off the power head. I noticed that it seems happier with less flow. The thing is rated at 240gph which may be strong for a 14g cube. The coral doesn't seem sick. Is it possible that I damaged it or did not properly acclimate it? I figured if I damaged the coral it would die or look like a part was rotting.

 

[E.intheC]

In my (somewhat limited with softies) experience, the toadstool should be ok in its new environment. My toadstool does that too.. It just shrinks down and the polyps disappear for a few hours/days at a time. Then it settles down and comes back looking great. You may have had the coral in a spot with high-flow and that was irritating it.

I would leave it alone (and maybe cut down on the water changes a bit).

 

[beachguy]

Yeah I just leave mine be and they eventually open up for me.

 

[Bnaum85]

pictures

pictures

The pictures may be a little blurry when enlarged but you should be able to see the polyps and how they are not fully extended. This coral has been in the tank for about 8 weeks and this is as good as it gets (so far... I hope).

 

[stk731]

Mine does same eventually comes back

 

[rapture]

I would seriously cut your water changes in half. personally I would do only 20% max per week
depending on your bio load of course, if your feeding allot of fish. imho of course.

 

[Bnaum85]

Could the problem be that it is too large for my tank (14gal cube)? At full extension the cap is about 1/3 the width of the tank as it has grown to double its original size in two months. It would be an awesome centerpiece if it would open all the way but i'm wondering if I should frag it before it takes over the whole tank.

 

[Bnaum85]

still no change...

still no change...

It's been almost three months and no progress. Since I was in the market for frags I decided to get two different types of toadstool leather frags (pictured below). They get sad every once in a while but then out of nowhere they are back to 100% as if nothing had happened. Is it possible that I did something wrong along the way and now the original coral is doomed? Should I try to frag it and cross my fingers?

I have also noticed that the guy in question is reaching for the top of the tank in a similar fashion to what zoas do when they aren't getting enough light. I'm going to hold off on moving him up in the hopes that someone may have an idea. Thanks!

(BTW, all tank parameters are still stable)

 

[Bnaum85]

The picture on the left is the wysiwyg from the website (didn't have a better picture of it in the tank). I think the guy in question is supposed to look like that one. The polyps seem much longer in proportion to the diameter of the cap in the small frag as compared to the big guy in question.

 

[wireefman]

I drench my leathers in light and flow as they are happiest that way...