Torch coral breaking my heart & M.i.a blenny... whyyyy

[CrazyCanadian]

Hey guys!
Is this the dreaded brown jelly disease? Anything I can do to help my beautiful torch coral? It literally happened overnight. Water perimeters are great.
Also interesting to note that my favourite little fish (bicolor blenny) is missing as well. Checked behind the tank, in the sump and no bodies are anywhere to be found. Can they hide for days without coming out for food? I'm sad. My fav coral and fish
Could it be my hermits killing fish and attacking my coral? I've seen them (the really big ones) digging up nasarrius and trochus and ripping them apart so I'm seriously debating surrendering them back to the lfs

 

[CrazyCanadian]

Or could one of my fish be causing some trouble...
2 oc clowns
1 royal gramma
1 six line wrasse
6 blue green chromis
1? Blenny ������

 

[AlSimmons]

I can't say for sure whether that's BJD, but it sure does looks like it. At this point though I think your best bet is to just toss the coral and move on. It might be too far gone for an Iodine dip and Heliofungia corals aren't really known for their ability to bounce back after an injury or disease such as this. As far as your Blenny goes it might resurface again, but I wouldn't hold your breath if it's been a couple days or so. An unwanted hitchhiker may have got it or it just died and the CUC disposed of the body.

 

[mcgyvr]

Looks like a fairly new tank (or an established one with some nutrient issues)..

But yes.. get it out.. its going down..

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2003/4/inverts

 

[CrazyCanadian]

Looks like a fairly new tank (or an established one with some nutrient issues)..

But yes.. get it out.. its going down..

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2003/4/inverts

Been up and running since feb. Not sure if that classifies it as new still but I do spot feeding with reefroids, phytoplankton and light is good. What other nutrients could I be missing out on? Other coral is doing great so I'm totally baffled as to why my torch took a turn for the worst.

 

[CrazyCanadian]

I can't say for sure whether that's BJD, but it sure does looks like it. At this point though I think your best bet is to just toss the coral and move on. It might be too far gone for an Iodine dip and Heliofungia corals aren't really known for their ability to bounce back after an injury or disease such as this. As far as your Blenny goes it might resurface again, but I wouldn't hold your breath if it's been a couple days or so. An unwanted hitchhiker may have got it or it just died and the CUC disposed of the body.

Ugh you're probably right I just can't bare to chuck it. It was extending (almost 6 inches) so beautifully a couple days ago.

 

[mcgyvr]

Been up and running since feb. Not sure if that classifies it as new still but I do spot feeding with reefroids, phytoplankton and light is good. What other nutrients could I be missing out on? Other coral is doing great so I'm totally baffled as to why my torch took a turn for the worst.

Nitrate and phosphate test results?
I'm not saying this had anything to do with it but its just something I noticed
I see that you have green rocks.. That is evidence of a nutrient problem.. (excessive nitrates or phosphates) ..

And your fungia (you say torch but typically a torch is a Euphyllia coral) could have simply been injured by too much water flow or anything else that could cause its tissue to get harmed by its sharp skeleton.. I see you have it up on the rocks.. Has it ever fallen from there?

And some corals are susceptible to brown jelly while others are not..
Stuff happens... any many times we will never know why..

 

[Sk8r]

The species is heliofungia, plate coral, and it usually sits on the sand, because a hard base can tear its tissue. Another hazard to them is a fighting conch, as the conch's 'spur' which it uses for getting about can tear the tissue. They will inflate and move themselves about at will. DO NOT throw the piece away. This species can populate the skeleton with little heliofungias. Just set it on the sand and let nature take its course.

 

[CrazyCanadian]

Nitrate and phosphate test results?
I'm not saying this had anything to do with it but its just something I noticed
I see that you have green rocks.. That is evidence of a nutrient problem.. (excessive nitrates or phosphates) ..

And your fungia (you say torch but typically a torch is a Euphyllia coral) could have simply been injured by too much water flow or anything else that could cause its tissue to get harmed by its sharp skeleton.. I see you have it up on the rocks.. Has it ever fallen from there?

And some corals are susceptible to brown jelly while others are not..
Stuff happens... any many times we will never know why..

Just tested all the levels last night and it's all good in that respect. I was considering moving it to the bottom sand but thought the inverts might stress it out more. No it's never fallen off and the other day it was stretched out almost 6 inches beautifully, the water flow there is gentle and nobody seems to be bugging it. I'm completely baffled. How long should I see if it will turn around? Or is it more important to get it out before it spreads around the tank to my other coral (some leathers, Xenia, elephant ear mush, and mushrooms)

 

[CrazyCanadian]

The species is heliofungia, plate coral, and it usually sits on the sand, because a hard base can tear its tissue. Another hazard to them is a fighting conch, as the conch's 'spur' which it uses for getting about can tear the tissue. They will inflate and move themselves about at will. DO NOT throw the piece away. This species can populate the skeleton with little heliofungias. Just set it on the sand and let nature take its course.

Oh!!! There hope! Thank you, I'll try the sand!

 

[Sk8r]

This one won't recover, but it may, stress MAY, produce babies as it demises. Don' t bother shooing undertakers off the piece: they're actually doing what nature would do. And babies can take a long, long time to appear on the surface.

 

[CrazyCanadian]

This one won't recover, but it may, stress MAY, produce babies as it demises. Don' t bother shooing undertakers off the piece: they're actually doing what nature would do. And babies can take a long, long time to appear on the surface.

Well some hope is better than none. Thank you, I moved it to the bottom.

 

[Sk8r]

To make it more likely offspring might happen, bring your water parameters to match mine in my sig line and hold them there. That could help.

 

[AlSimmons]

Well some hope is better than none. Thank you, I moved it to the bottom. ��

Just a heads up, if BJD is in fact what's going on here your kind of rolling the dice with the health your other corals by keeping that Fungia in your tank. I believe this disease is contagious so for the greater good it might be best to remove the coral altogether. I know I would, but it's your call. Good luck!

 

[Sk8r]

It's hard to tell from your photo. SUggest you google images of the disease and see if it matches what you're seeing close up. Fungia are notably vulnerable to injury, and it seems to be resting on a hard surface, which could be an issue, but just hard to tell.

 

[mcgyvr]

Just tested all the levels last night and it's all good in that respect.

Out of curiosity.. What do you define as "all good"?
Are your nitrate levels under 2 and phosphate under .03?

 

[CrazyCanadian]

Out of curiosity.. What do you define as "all good"?
Are your nitrate levels under 2 and phosphate under .03?

Nitrate is at 2 and phosphate is undetectable. Alkalinity and ph is also good.

 

[CrazyCanadian]

It's hard to tell from your photo. SUggest you google images of the disease and see if it matches what you're seeing close up. Fungia are notably vulnerable to injury, and it seems to be resting on a hard surface, which could be an issue, but just hard to tell.

So hard to tell if it's bjd... what would you do? Leave it and roll the dice with the other corals or take it out?
Also to note, I did catch a hermit crawl across it so perhaps it caused its tentacles to get cut up?

 

[CrazyCanadian]

Out of curiosity.. What do you define as "all good"?
Are your nitrate levels under 2 and phosphate under .03?

Oh and I'm thinking green rocks are partially due to the fact that I have my tank by natural sunlight and the fact that my (soon to be returned) hermit crabs keep killing off my snails. The underside of the rocks that don't have sunlight hitting them are free of algae.