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I got this offline and it arrived 2 days ago. It seems to have a had a rough shipment 'cause to me it looks like its not inflating as much as it could be and the color seems faded. Is it still unhappy from shipping or is this actually what it is suppose to look like?

Before anybody asks my param's are fine. I also fed it some mysis yesterday which it ate right up so is there something else that it might not be happy about?

Tank: AP 24
Flow: MP10 on reefcrest at about 65%
Lighting: 150w halide, 14k

I've never kept one of these so for all I know this is what it is suppose to look like however looking at other pictures of these types of coral they don't seem as "skeletal" as mine.

the lighting and camera quality/skills of the camera person has a lot to do with it. most online stores take there pics under 20k lighting. so that could be your difference in color and al ot of it depends what bulb they and you are using too. also, give it a week, the coral can still be acclimating to your tank and hasn't colored up yet.

Thanks for the reply. I understand about the lighting differences and my camera vs. theirs etc. so as far as color goes I suppose that is the reason there. My main concern however was the skeletal look it has to it, is this a normal acclimation thing?

Give it some time

I think this is entirely normal after recent shipping. I've had my open brain for nearly 2 years and some days when it's unhappy it shrinks to less than half its inflated size, and it almost always shrinks at night. They're incredibly hardy corals. I mistreated my tank for a while and my bright red brain faded to a pale pink, but it hung on and now it's a deep, vibrant red again. They'll eat if you feed them, although sometimes you have to stimulate their appetite first.

Yea I'll just give it another week or so I just wasn't sure how long it takes for them to become fully acclimated. There is a week long coral guarantee on the website I bought it off of so I wanted a good answer just in case it looked as if it wasn't going to make it. I'll give an update in a week or so, thanks for the help.