Welso Problems

[agruetz]

I am pretty sure he is on his way out. Recently I had to go out of town and while I was gone the person watching my tank did not tell me things were starting to look crappy for 3 days when I got home I was like ***. I found my nitrates at 40. I did a massive water change and got them down to 10 that night...over the next 2 or so they are back to .75 or lower like normal. Do I have any chance to save this guy? Is there anything I can do for him now?

I have attached before and after pictures. Any help is welcome this nitrate spike has already cost my fungia plate his life and some slugs and lettuce sea slug and probably some of my zoa's too.

 

[seapug]

I've seen much worse. Move it into a shady spot out of strong current for a few days and see if it improves.

 

[agruetz]

Mine poor guy has never looked like this. I stuck him under a plastic container with holes in it to keep the fish off him and hermits... I will see if I can find a shady spot for him...full shade or partial?

 

[sjwitt]

Looks hungry to me. While you have it covered target feed and see if it doesn't bounce right back.

 

[agruetz]

I will target feed him tonight, but it is unlikely it is hungry. I feed a lot and this regression happened quickly durning the nitrate spike until this he was very large and happy about double this size.

 

[agruetz]

So now my welso has what looks like a brown Jelly on it. Is it recovering or getting worse? I will try to get a picture up tonight. I am thinking it is a goner, but I have little experience in this area this is the first time I have had any type of major issue in my tank that affected my coral's.

 

[agruetz]

Picture.

 

[KRAZE]

I havn't seen many recover from the way it looks in your latest pic, sorry :-( I ork at the lfs and typically they won't regrow over that, and at that point we usually attempt to cut hat is still living flesh into frags, but in a wellso that's tricky. But stay positive, you may get some life back!

 

[agruetz]

unfortunately I am not sure all of it is not dead. I think it just took about a week to finish decaying. The spike in nitrates and presumably ammonia before hand got it. I lack the proper tools to frag it. I do not think it would work any way I am pretty sure all flesh is dead it just has not decayed yet.

 

[KRAZE]

Sorry for the loss, wellso/trachs and scolis are my favorite corals, always tough to see something so beautiful just melt away.

On a side note, if it isn't to upsetting for ya, bleach the skeleton, makes a good paper weight on a desk, I have several.

 

[agruetz]

Yea I thought about sun bleaching it, and putting it back in and letting some GSP grow over it or something like that.

 

[hogfish]

yeah...get that wellso in in that shady area behind it. that is a spot made for that coral. also...try to do some additional feedings with a coral food or some meaty fish food.