My new coral

[Curehead]

i was in the LF buying a refractometer and he mentioned that he was in the middle of closing down one of his marine show tanks and had a hard coral left if I wanted it for free. he also gave me 2 free green chrons which I was going to buy anyway.
When he gave me the coral he said is was hardy and easy to care for and gave me a bottle of Zooplankton to feed it with. In the bag it looked like a spongey slimey cabbage coating a small rock. I put it in the top of my live rock and within 20 minutes it transformed into this beauty. he did tell me what it was in Turkish but I forgot. Any ideas? My clown fish are buried deep within it right now.

 

[Curehead]

My tank has gone like a hippy commune since I put this coral in. The boxer shrimp is riding around on the side of one of the clowns and the goby is roosting in the coral....I rekon it's under water majuauna...

 

[BigAl07]

Uggg... you need a new LFS!

That's a Flower Pot Coral (Goniopora )

Family: Poritidae
Polyp Size: LPS - Large polyp stony
Range: South Pacific
Color Form: Red
Ideal Supplements: Calcium, Strontium, Trace elements
Reef Compatible: Yes
Tank Conditions: 72-78ºF; sg 1.023-1.025; pH 8.1-8.4
Water Flow: Medium to Strong
Light: High
Dominance: Aggressive
Placement: Low to Medium
Care Level: Difficult

What happens is usually one of two things:

A) Our semi sterile tanks cause this animal to slowly starve to death

B) In attempting to feed this coral with LIQUID foods we upset the delicate balance in the tank and cause water parameter problems (Aka ALGAE outbreaks).

 

[Big Ray]

Hello,
to be honest, I would stay away from that LFS !! he lied

that is not an easy coral and in fact one of the ones we cant keep alive for long !
its called a flower pot coral /Goniopora SP.

they require feeding. daily !

turn all the pumps off and place an inverted coke bottel on it and using a turkey baster, add the food inside and let it eat it and .... .

longest I could keep one was 1.5 years, twice/or more times a day feeding.

 

[Curehead]

Oh well I'll see how it goes.
I'm planning to target feed it weekly with Brightwell Aquatics Zooplankton.
I also bought a piece of rock with some macro algae attached to it to stick in the sump so hopefully it will clean up any extra nutrients.

its is beautiful though.

 

[Big Ray]

Oh well I'll see how it goes.
I'm planning to target feed it weekly with Brightwell Aquatics Zooplankton.
I also bought a piece of rock with some macro algae attached to it to stick in the sump so hopefully it will clean up any extra nutrients.

its is beautiful though.

cant argue on its beauty

another method I used over the years (I am guilty of trying to hard to keep these guys) is to remove it, put it in a bucket with tank water, and a air pump and feed it in there and then return it and discharge the water. I did that daily, still was not enough.

I know people who have auto feeders, feeding their tank liquid food up to 10 times a day, and they can keep these guys living for longer. but that requires huge skimer and some other means of exporting N and P

 

[Curehead]

cant argue on its beauty

another method I used over the years (I am guilty of trying to hard to keep these guys) is to remove it, put it in a bucket with tank water, and a air pump and feed it in there and then return it and discharge the water. I did that daily, still was not enough.

I know people who have auto feeders, feeding their tank liquid food up to 10 times a day, and they can keep these guys living for longer. but that requires huge skimer and some other means of exporting N and P

The fish absolutely love it. I think they think its a nem

 

[twofinhogie]

What difference does it make???? He got it for FREEEEEEE!!!!!!

I personaly like your LFS. I like Free things!!!!!!!

 

[Curehead]

Just put some frozen blood worm and live brine shrimp in for the verts and it took three or four worms and there seem to be about 10 brine shrimp stuck in it. I'm guessing its a meat eater as well as a planktonite lol.

 

[Big Ray]

What difference does it make???? He got it for FREEEEEEE!!!!!!

I personaly like your LFS. I like Free things!!!!!!!

it is a living coral, which would live for hundreds of years if left in the oceans

the problem is, LFS told him its a hardy coral while it is the farthest thing from it so you should not take advice from that LFS, he either doesnt know or doesnt want to let u know

but I see what you mean as well , it was in the store anyways so it would have died anyways, so why not enjoy it till it dies and we think if we all stop buying it, they may.....may stop collecting it. (I am guilty of buying it in hopes of finding it the best food source )

 

[twofinhogie]

it is a living coral, which would live for hundreds of years if left in the oceans

the problem is, LFS told him its a hardy coral while it is the farthest thing from it so you should not take advice from that LFS, he either doesnt know or doesnt want to let u know

but I see what you mean as well , it was in the store anyways so it would have died anyways, so why not enjoy it till it dies and we think if we all stop buying it, they may.....may stop collecting it. (I am guilty of buying it in hopes of finding it the best food source )

Agree w/ everything you said.

-wouldn't take advice from that goofy guy
-since you got it got free your not really supporting anything
-someone is going to get some enjoyment from it (ie. clown and shrimp)!!!

 

[TerriW]

It might have been free, but it's still a living being. It deserves an honest attempt to provide the necessary nutrients and conditions to thrive. Anything less is cruel and derelict.

T

 

[Frankie]

Well, technically it is a captive.
But either way, the LFS should have given better advice. This is a failing in many LFS.
Good luck with the new coral!

 

[Curehead]

seems to be doing very well right now and has taken on a beautiful luminous green sparkle. Spoke with the LFSG and he reckons they are pretty easy to keep here and he has had four in his house (under his shop) for the last 4 years (which he showed me and they seem pretty well established).
He stated that the 12 tendril-led flowerpot is far harder to keep than this 24 tendril-led variety. he didn't know why but said they need to be fed 1once or twice a day but only feed when they feel like it, whereas this one just needs 50ml of Photoplankton per week added to the tank and no need for target feeding seeing as I am feeding the goby and clowns live brine shrimp (which I grow in a coke bottle) he said to add a few more shrimp at feeding time and to feed the photoplankton to the shrimp instead and the coral will get it in a better form.

He's got no reason to lie to me as he gave me it free and seems determined for my tank to flourish. He actually dropped by yesterday to show me where the local vet was to get my Golden retriever's booster injections done at a discount.

 

[Curehead]

It might have been free, but it's still a living being. It deserves an honest attempt to provide the necessary nutrients and conditions to thrive. Anything less is cruel and derelict.

T

Can you be 100% sure that all your live rock was 'weathered' from the reef?
I can assure you that this coral is getting all the love and attention that I can afford it, and for now it's flourishing and being tended by my goby and clowns...even the snails are cleaning the base rock it came on.

 

[steved13]

When I bought mine I was told, they need very small particles to feed. The LFS recommended Reef Roids. only time will tell if they work for the goniopora, but the rest of the tank has really bursted with new color since feeding the reef roids. Both of mine opened quickly and look great. Mine are red in color, BigAl called yours red, but the pics look more greenish to me, which is yours?

While I agree your LFS shouldn't have told you it was easy, I have noticed, in my short time back in this hobby, LFS workers/owners tend to rely on their experiences for that sort of thing. If they have had bad luck with an easy coral the tend to say it's difficult, because it was/is for them. If your guy has had them for 4 years, it's easy for him. I wouldn't condemn him, but always do your own research. Just my .02

 

[Curehead]

Well the stems seem to be bright pink right now and the pollop tips are luminous green/yellow. It seems to have doubled in size in the last 4 days that I've had it. or maybe its just comfortable. it seemed stressed by the clowns at first but now it doesn't seem to even notice them.
I've noticed it will take any scraps of flake or pellets and I've even seen it take the Boxer Shrimp sticks if the boxer doesn't get to them first. Then he goes off to the coral and shares it with the coral lol, he seems to appreciate the coral holding it still for him.

 

[steved13]

I'm not positive but I think it's a green goniopora. Not that it really maters, as some will say the red is easier, some say the green is easier, some say different placement for either, but then the next guy says the opposite. The only fairly consistent thing is they seem very easy for 6 - 12 months and then they go downhill pretty quickly. Some speculate it's because they live on what they have stored from nature, and when that is exhausted they whither and die. So you can't really feel successful until it's been over 1 year. I have 2 red goniopora, 1 wild yellow centers, and 1 ORA aquacultured, blue centers. We'll see what happens.

Best of luck with it.

I'm with twofinhogie any LFS that gives a free coral or fish can't be to bad. Always do your own research anyway, the LFS is just 1 source.

 

[Curehead]

I'm not positive but I think it's a green goniopora. Not that it really maters, as some will say the red is easier, some say the green is easier, some say different placement for either, but then the next guy says the opposite. The only fairly consistent thing is they seem very easy for 6 - 12 months and then they go downhill pretty quickly. Some speculate it's because they live on what they have stored from nature, and when that is exhausted they whither and die. So you can't really feel successful until it's been over 1 year. I have 2 red goniopora, 1 wild yellow centers, and 1 ORA aquacultured, blue centers. We'll see what happens.

Best of luck with it.

I'm with twofinhogie any LFS that gives a free coral or fish can't be to bad. Always do your own research anyway, the LFS is just 1 source.

I agree. It seems that some people say they have kept them for years with no problems. I read about one guy who makes regular frags from his for his friends as it grows so quickly.
I read a piece done by a dive trainer and keen reef keeper who has a dive school in Indonesia that they die back every 2 years on the reef and that it's part of it's natural cycle.

I read earlier too that they used to be hard to keep and 'they have turned a corner, with people feeding them less and leaving them to their own devices'
though I expect that since my tank is fairly new it might not have enough of a sustainable food chain to do that yet.

 

[TerriW]

My apologies to Curehead,

My response was in reply to this post:

What difference does it make???? He got it for FREEEEEEE!!!!!!

I personaly like your LFS. I like Free things!!!!!!!

I simply felt this was an ignorant reply and that twofinhogie needs to be educated on the potential? environmental impact of this "hobby".

Curehead asks, "Can you be 100% sure that all your live rock was 'weathered' from the reef?" NO, I can't, but I will assure you that I have done my best to purchase ALL livestock and products from environmentally responsible businesses/individuals since I became aware of the impact the marine hobby has had on the environment.

I am sure that you ARE giving this coral all that you can give it, and I am wishing good things for you and the flower pot.

Again, good luck!

T