Zoas dying!!! Stinks

[Monster00101]

I have a zoa frag that seems to be slowly melting away the polyps on the bottom are turning brown and they smell real bad. there is also a black goo coming out of them. Can anyone id my problem? mabye a way to cure it? Also im worried it will spread to my other zoas. it is not my favorite should i just throw it out?

thanks, jeff

 

[Akwarius]

(playing "chaps" on kazoo)

if there still are some healthy polyps, frag those suckers away from the melting ones and give them a good dip!

 

[Monster00101]

When u say give them a dip do u mean fw?

 

[Akwarius]

When u say give them a dip do u mean fw?

Lord no. Fw dips are meant to shake off parasites and unwanted inverts. Use saltwater with a few drops of your preferred coral dip.

 

[whipit]

I like coral amino..
maybe give it a dip in coral rx incase there are parasites then give it a good soak in coral amino
I use this everytime I frag and have never lost a polyp
Brightwell Aquatics Coral Amino Acid Supplement
Other Brightwell Aquatics Products

The Coral Amino Acid supplement by Brightwell Aquatics has the same complex of free-form amino acids in the same ratios found within tissues of stony Corals. This supplement is beneficial to all corals (stony and soft), as well as solitary and colonial polyps. Amino Acids provide the building blocks of coral tissue in ideal ratios to encourage the formation of new tissue. It also encourages new tissue growth to repair damage incurred during fragmentation and propagation, encourages growth by budding and fission, and encourages vibrant coloration

 

[MUCHO REEF]

I have a zoa frag that seems to be slowly melting away the polyps on the bottom are turning brown and they smell real bad. there is also a black goo coming out of them. Can anyone id my problem? mabye a way to cure it? Also im worried it will spread to my other zoas. it is not my favorite should i just throw it out?

thanks, jeff

Sorry to hear the bad news. A foul smell is the smell of death. There's no doubt in my mind that those polyps are dying, near death and not coming back or they are already dead. I've seen this many times and even in LFS.

The black goo is most likely very dark brown zooxanthellae being expelled through the oral slit due to stress.

How long have they been this way?

Do you have a picture?

If it is a small 5 or 6 polyp frag, with death and decay already set it, don't bother with even doing surgery. Remove the frag and through it away ASAP. Depending on the number of polyp/size of rock, how long they have been this way, they could be save with cutting away the affected polyp and even go one maybe 2 rows inward or away from the healthy polyps, it all depends on the affected areas. Swab the cut areas with a Q tip dipped in diluted Lugol's and tank water mixture or a medicinal dip. Yes, in can and will spread regardless of the cause.

If you have a picture it would really help.

Good luck my friend.

Mucho Reef

 

[Monster00101]

There is only like ten poypls on it. It is the only one like that and my params r spot on. Alk a little low. 120.

 

[MUCHO REEF]

Do you have a picture?

If they are tightly grouped, I'd trash them. The smell is dead/decaying cuticle and if it is a 10 polyp frag on a small rock, you aren't going to be able to save them.

If you want to try, you need to cut away all dead flesh and any connecting flesh. With only 10 polyps, there shouldn't be much left to save. I'm sorry, good luck though.

Mucho

 

[Monster00101]

i just picked up the frag to inspect it and noticed a small clear worm crawling around inside. I removed him could that have been the culprit?

 

[zachfishman]

i just picked up the frag to inspect it and noticed a small clear worm crawling around inside. I removed him could that have been the culprit?

I doubt it; probably just feeding on the dead /dying parts.

 

[Monster00101]

too bad thought mabye i got it.

 

[zachfishman]

Good luck, I too will be trying to save a frag of zoos tonight (store-bought eagle eyes).

 

[Friday Night]

Pic?

 

[Dave VG]

Did these make it? Progress report would be nice.

 

[Reef Junkie]

I second that

 

[Monster00101]

No there did not make it. But I had another colony that was starting to look bad and I dipped them with coral rx and they look good now.

 

[Dave VG]

Man that sucks glad to here the other is doing well tho

 

[Jacuzzi]

Had this happen to me a couple weeks ago. Bought a huge colony of zoas did a fw dip before I put them in my tank and they did great for about a week. Then the colony began to close up a third at time and by the time I tried to save them it was too late. All the hundreds of other zoas were doing fine so I just tossed it, wasnt worth infecting the whole tank. My belief is that they wer not aquacultured and came right out of the ocean and just melted away in my tank.

 

[heyyoitsnicky]

sounds like something that happened to me. we found out that there is this particular disease that effects only snails and soft coral. i had it. and when i took the snails out...everything got better