What is happening to my softies!?

AndrewRosenbaum · 04/26/2012, 01:55 AM

A week ago one of my large mushroom coral have been looking like they're shrivelled. 3 days after i noticed this it started spewing out the stringy stuff (I think its their guts). Then the smaller mushroom corals started doing the same! A few days after that, both my leathers retracted all their polyps and they started to shrivel. The zoanthids also closed up and the xenia began to look mad too.
However, all my hammer coral were happy, fully extended and continuously eating what I feed them. I always thought that LPS were much more sensitive to water quality than softies as softies are usually beginner coral.

Is there something in the water that affects softies but not LPS?
Like too much phosphates, too much organic waste, etc????

AndrewRosenbaum · 04/26/2012, 01:57 AM

I just looked at the tank and found a dead head from a hammer. It must've fallen off and I didnt notice when I was moving the main colony. It was totally empty at the bottom of the tank....When hammers rot do they release poison into the water?? And the main hammer's didn't respond to it as its their own poison?

chrispc66 · 04/27/2012, 08:55 AM

Water parameters are necessary to provide some advice here.

Mushrooms spewing white curly substances is a bad sign, normally excess zoox ie ejected as a brown stringy product.

If I had to guess, I'd say your phosphate levels are too high.

Good luck

04/26/2012, 01:55 AM	#1
AndrewRosenbaum Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 40	What is happening to my softies!? A week ago one of my large mushroom coral have been looking like they're shrivelled. 3 days after i noticed this it started spewing out the stringy stuff (I think its their guts). Then the smaller mushroom corals started doing the same! A few days after that, both my leathers retracted all their polyps and they started to shrivel. The zoanthids also closed up and the xenia began to look mad too. However, all my hammer coral were happy, fully extended and continuously eating what I feed them. I always thought that LPS were much more sensitive to water quality than softies as softies are usually beginner coral. Is there something in the water that affects softies but not LPS? Like too much phosphates, too much organic waste, etc????

04/27/2012, 08:55 AM	#3
chrispc66 Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 75	Water parameters are necessary to provide some advice here. Mushrooms spewing white curly substances is a bad sign, normally excess zoox ie ejected as a brown stringy product. If I had to guess, I'd say your phosphate levels are too high. Good luck __________________ chrispc66 MASWA member - Western Australia. Current Tank Info: Long term reef tank

04/26/2012, 01:57 AM	#2
AndrewRosenbaum Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 40	I just looked at the tank and found a dead head from a hammer. It must've fallen off and I didnt notice when I was moving the main colony. It was totally empty at the bottom of the tank....When hammers rot do they release poison into the water?? And the main hammer's didn't respond to it as its their own poison?