Montipora Undata Issue

[Ted_C]

I seem to be having an issue with my Montipora Undata

Pic from 8/7
https://tclaypool.homeserver.com/public_pictures/2013_08_07_Montipora_Undata.jpg

This morning
https://tclaypool.homeserver.com/public_pictures/2013_08_17_Montipora_Undata.jpg

Two things have changed in the last ten days:
I started to decrease my photoperiod. I was sunrising at 7:00 AM and sunsetting at 8:30 PM (total - 13.5 hours) on 8/7. On 8/12, I decreased this so sunrise at 8:00 AM and sunset at 8:00 PM.
I added a bunch of SPS sticks from a friend's tank on 8/10. Pests are unlikely. Nothing else in the tank is affected or showing signs of attack.

All other parameters are stable: Alk at 8.4, Ca at 420, Mg at 1320 (Red Sea), Salinity at 35 PPT (1.027) (Refract), pH at 8.3, NO3 at not detected (Red Sea), PO4 at 13 PPB (Hanna ULR)

Any ideas?

[theyangman]

If you have decreased the photo period it wouldn't be bleaching, but is there anyway that perhaps you did have a hitchhiker that is now irritating this specific coral? Looks like it is being stung or attacked. All the polyps have retracted and it is turning white, any other corals with long sweepers nearby? (It doesn't look like it from the photo but ya never know)

Any fish that might have decided to pick at it?

[Ted_C]

between then and now - hmm - nothing I can think of. I put my pod hotel into the tank on wednesday - but this tissue loss / irritation started almost as soon as I decreased the photoperiod.

Oh - I forgot - I also changed my spectrum a bit. I took both of my white channels down to 15% (they were running at 100% cool whites and 40% warm whites) - Pacific Sun Triton R2. I did that when I reduced my photoperiod but didn't think anything of it since whites aren't supposed to have anything good for corals. Everything else is running 100% with an overall power intensity of 65%

[twiggyb]

Am I reading that right that your phosphates are at 13?

[YoungREEFA]

^^^ even if that is a nitrate mistake 13 is high
Get some gfo boy!
Pacific sun packs that par punch, you need to get the po4 to .003
Do you have access to a parmeter?

[Ted_C]

13 PPB - your used to seeing it in PPM - which would be 0.013 PPM

[twiggyb]

Are you sure you didn't have an alkalinity spike in that short time maybe? It's weird that it would look like that due to a dimmer lighting.

[jerpa]

13 PPB - your used to seeing it in PPM - which would be 0.013 PPM

That would be ppb phosphorous with the Hanna 736. You would multiply it by 3 to get phosphate. So you're at .039 ppm.

I would lean towards it being the change in lighting.

[Ted_C]

It is indeed an irritation issue. My copperband butterfly quit doin his job - I discovered an apitasia growing inside the rock behind the Undata.

Since I'm stuck here... should I see if I can just move the frag?

[Ted_C]

or - and this is a question - can torts reproduce and spread to other areas of the tank? I found a purple bump (what I thought was corralaine) underneath where the Undata was. It had a 5" stinger that could also have been irritating the undata.

It looked like it was the beginning of new growth in a completely separate area of the tank similar to the area you see in this shot - circled the place where the stinger comes out and you can see the stinger it has out (this thing is by itself - with 8" around it to avoid irritating other corals

https://tclaypool.homeserver.com/public_pictures/2013_08_18_Emmett_blue_polyp_purple_tort_stinger.jpg

[animalkingdom]

vermetid

[Ted_C]

Aren't they mobile? This protrusion from the tort has been there forever. Its tube is purple too - is that possible?

[Ted_C]

I see they are not mobile after a few searches. It seems I have a bigger problem. I have a millipora that's been closed up (no polyps) for months now. Same with an Ora Red Planet. I bet they are getting irritated too.