Did an acro crab do this???

[TIMMYE]

So i found this ugly acro crab in the piece of SPS yesterday. And today after really looking at I noticed the bottom of it is turning white. There was no white on the base prior to this.It looks like is RTN. Is this caused by the acro crab? This piece has been in my tanks for a couple of months and has been doing great, with good growth and PE. This crab was brown and hairy about a 1/2-3/4" in size.

It is about the color of a rose mili. Also any idea what type of sps might be?

My next question is should I frag this to save it or will it come back?

Thanks for the help. Tim




http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q101/timmye53575/SLR%20PICS/SLRPics4-24-07040.jpg

http://i134.photobucket.com/albums/q101/timmye53575/SLR%20PICS/SLRPics4-24-07041.jpg

[meschaefer]

I don't think it is the acro crab. Looks like you have some other issues going on. What are your water conditions like? especially phosphate and alk?

[acrodave]

if the crab was brown and hairy and if it has blue eyes throw him in the yard. but what the acro look like cant say what is doinf it but if the crab looks like that get rid of it anyways

[mpoletti]

Did you use epoxy to attach the acro?

[Orca33]

Acro crabs are benificial to your coral, they help keep it clean.

[TIMMYE]

I belive this was expoxy, but it was already mounted when I got it. I also have the piece next to it that appears to be doing the same same thing. And I did toss the crab. My garbage disposal got him.

[meschaefer]

Based upon the picture, I still think that you are having other problems, even if the epoxy caused damage or not. And if the frag was mounted when you got it, I doubt it was the epoxy if you had it for any amount of time. The other corals in the picture do not look well.

What are your water paramters?

[acrodave]

Orca33 not all are benificial

[cmc0814]

Check your alkalinity!!!

[TIMMYE]

Alk is 9.3 Cal is 450 Sal 1.026 temp 79-81 Ph 8.2 Nitrates 10

[meschaefer]

and phosphates?

[TIMMYE]

Dont have a PO4 test kit.

[TIMMYE]

I have no alage out breaks or anything out of the norm.

[meschaefer]

I would put a heafty wager that your Po4 is very high. It the first thing I thought of when I looked at your picks. The corals in the bottom photo are not doing well, dying or dead already.

Just because you don't have any algae outbreaks doesn't mean that you don't have PO4. My buddy's tank has no algae in it, but when I tested his water with a colormeter it was 1.87

IME experince there are two ways you can go about this. Either get/or borrow a respectible PO4 test (a colormeter is best, hatch test kits are ok as well, not salifert or red sea) or....

Work under the assumption that your PO4 is high, start with some water changes, add in a Phosban Reactor and become very picky about the food that you are feeding. Getting PO4 down, and keeping it down is not easy.

[meschaefer]

For what it is worth... I had trouble with my SPS for almost a year when I first started with them. I had mysterious RTN and corals that just didn't look happy. I was testing PO4 weekly with a salifert test kit, but it always came back witha a zero reading.

I finally figured out that the salifert test kit was not giving me anywhere near an accurate reading. I did some water changes and started using GFO, changing it out weekly. A couple of months later, I picked up a Hanna meter. After all the work I had done, my phosphates where still at .1. A couple of months later and I have got them down to somewhere between .04 and .07. I am still battling it. But my SPS have colored up alot, and I can really see a difference in my tank.

[OnlyCrimson]

Nooooo what did the little crab look like?? was he white with the black band? Anyways, looks like you got a nice rtn case goin.

[TIMMYE]

As far as the other corals in the pic, the one to the right. It is doing the same thing as the main piece I am concered about. The cats paw bleached out when I changed out to 400MH's. So this is starting to color back up.

My next question is regardless of the PO4 test do I frag this peice to save?? TIA

[meschaefer]

If you don't correct the underlying problem, it is going to STN (if it's not dead by now its not RTN), the fact that the coral next to it is "doing the same thing" should be a clue that you have a systematic problem.

You could either frag it, or you could try placing crazy glue over the edges where the tissue is receding.

[TIMMYE]

So i am adding a phosphate reactor and using the remaing Kent Phosphate sponge that I have. Then I will use a different type. I also fraged the the piece in question to try and save it. Wish me luck.