Amy Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 I am changing my tank a bit, will be either 2 gallons I am going back to the 10 watt Mini 50/50 Coralife PC screw in bulb. I am done with LED's. I want to have my Ricordea Garden and they do so much better under these lights for me. On this Forum "trueisb2" did the most beautiful little tank that I would like to duplicate as I have the corals to do it with. The only one I don't have is the Purple Whip Gorgonian. So my question is, would this Purple Whip do okay in my tank? I have read they are depend on light but also like the addition of some Phyto or Zoo plankton too. Strong flow as well. If you can take a look at trueisb2 setup on here I would love to know if I would be able to do the same thing as that just keeping things simple. Link to comment
Maniu Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 Higher flow and light intensity plus occasional feeding helps. Stronger flow helps in shedding which they do. And prevents algae or cyano growth that suffocate them slowly. PA is almost always better in higher flow placement. I could be wrong but from my experience, flow is more crucial to their good health then lighting or supplemental feeding. But it doesn't mean you shouldn't target feed phyto or other fine coral food. Last but not least. Never expose gorgonian to air. Always handle them submerged under water. Whomever you get it from should make sure that bag is filled with water without any air gaps. Acclimation - float bag for temperature adjustment. No need for drip acclimation. Open bag under water. And that's pretty much it. I have 4 kinds of different gorgs and they are all doing well thanks to this simple to fallow guidelines. Link to comment
xcom Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 To answer your question, I had the same purple sea whip for years. They are very easy to care for as I've had in tanks with PC, Metal Halide, LED light. I don't even spot feed it. If you place them in your pico tank, I would recommend place where it gets some what of a medium to strong flow; and don't panic when sometimes the polyps don't extend out for few days because it will shred it skin. When I choose my gorg for the pico tank, I cut it out from a larger colony (I then trade the non-selected ones to the LFS or other reefers); that way you have better options for nicer branches. I control the growth of my gorg dues to the tank size, so they don't growth like crazy and into unknown shapes. Think of it like bonsai. Hope that helps. Link to comment
Bingo1213 Posted March 11, 2015 Share Posted March 11, 2015 I have had a few gorgonians too and I agree with everything except the fact that they need to always be submerged. When I worked at the LFS ORA would send us gorgonians packaged with no water. They just vacuum seal them in a bag. They are damp but not by any means submerged. I have also exposed mine to air, not for long just usually the time it takes to get them from the bag to the tank or vise versa. Mine seem to really need supplemental feedings. Link to comment
Amy Posted March 12, 2015 Author Share Posted March 12, 2015 Thank you all so much for the help I really like them but wanted to make sure I would be able to accommodate them in my tank. The one I really like has shorter branches I will call them the other one has much longer and fuller, which would you get? Also if branches break off will the grow back in that area? Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Last but not least. Never expose gorgonian to air. Always handle them submerged under water. What happens to them when they are exposed to air? Link to comment
xcom Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 I have had a few gorgonians too and I agree with everything except the fact that they need to always be submerged. When I worked at the LFS ORA would send us gorgonians packaged with no water. They just vacuum seal them in a bag. They are damp but not by any means submerged. I have also exposed mine to air, not for long just usually the time it takes to get them from the bag to the tank or vise versa. Mine seem to really need supplemental feedings. What happens to them when they are exposed to air? Mine expose to air all the time (not for a long period of time tho) and they seem to be fine, but don't blame me if yours start to die LOL... Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Mine expose to air all the time (not for a long period of time tho) and they seem to be fine, but don't blame me if yours start to die LOL... Not a single one of my specimens have been completely submerged all the time. I've removed each several times during my dino infestation and clipped the tips off, a couple of them I forgot about and left sitting out - still with me today. I was just curious as to what is thought to happen Link to comment
xcom Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Thank you all so much for the help I really like them but wanted to make sure I would be able to accommodate them in my tank. The one I really like has shorter branches I will call them the other one has much longer and fuller, which would you get? Also if branches break off will the grow back in that area? Do you have any pics? I would stay away from the feather gorg, they tend to be a bit more sensitive and atheistically they look better when they are a large colony, not in a pico. The purple angular sea whip, spiny orange sea rod, and the yellow sea whip looks much better in a pico. I ordered all my gorg from Sea Life Inc, and they are great. I always order the nano gorg, but leave a note in the order that it is for a pico, they always select me the best looking branch that is slightly larger and I frag it down. Link to comment
xcom Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Not a single one of my specimens have been completely submerged all the time. I've removed each several times during my dino infestation and clipped the tips off, a couple of them I forgot about and left sitting out - still with me today. I was just curious as to what is thought to happen They will do this Link to comment
Amy Posted March 12, 2015 Author Share Posted March 12, 2015 I don't have a picture but it's the purple whip gorgonian (pseudopterogorgia sp.) Link to comment
Maniu Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 What happens to them when they are exposed to air?According to shipping instructions from reputable coral vendor they have trouble clearing air from their system when expouse. I had them espoused to air before. Long time ago. They seemed to be fine for weeks and months. Unfortunately I don't have any of those gorgs anymore. I don't think they are as vulnerable to exposure as say sponges. Maybe they just get pissed..... I have seen sea fans exposed to air in tidal waves, slammed against rocks etc. Do as you feel in this regards. But I never had pissed off gorg or lost one since. Link to comment
Bingo1213 Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 According to shipping instructions from reputable coral vendor they have trouble clearing air from their system when expouse. I had them espoused to air before. Long time ago. They seemed to be fine for weeks and months. Unfortunately I don't have any of those gorgs anymore. I don't think they are as vulnerable to exposure as say sponges. Maybe they just get pissed..... I have seen sea fans exposed to air in tidal waves, slammed against rocks etc. Do as you feel in this regards. But I never had pissed off gorg or lost one since. It is a little hard to believe that it took weeks or months for them to die after being exposed briefly to air. With sponges or an incorrectly burped clam this happens in a matter of a day. It makes me think something else might have happened. Did you make any other big changes to your tank when you lost them? Link to comment
Maniu Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Could be. Lol I honestly don't remember. Link to comment
Bingo1213 Posted March 12, 2015 Share Posted March 12, 2015 Could be. Lol I honestly don't remember. What kind of gorgonians were they just out of curiosity haha Link to comment
xcom Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 There are some super sensitive non-photosynthesis deep water gorgs that might die from exposure to air, but not the purple angular whip. Link to comment
Maniu Posted March 13, 2015 Share Posted March 13, 2015 What kind of gorgonians were they just out of curiosity haha Forgot the name but it was Australian orange/red with white polyps Link to comment
Livewreck Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 Forgot the name but it was Australian orange/red with white polyps. Maniu also said in earlier posts: ...it doesn't mean you shouldn't target feed phyto or other fine coral food. -snip - They seemed to be fine for weeks and months [before the died] Ah ha! Now this all makes sense. The assumption that exposure to air led to the eventual death of the gorgonians was quite reasonable... but incorrect. It was not air exposure that killed the gorgonians: those gorgonians slowly starved to death. I am very fond of Gorgonians. (My first wife was a Gorgonian. ) I have never encountered (either in person or in my reading) a Gorgonian with red branches and white polyps that was photosynthetic. Maniu's gorgonian was almost certainly non-photosynthetic, and that class of gorgonian requires frequent feedings of meaty food - not phyto, as he suggested. Unlike photosynthetic gorgonians, the non-photosynthetic gorgonians are difficult to maintain in reef aquariums. They require frequent feedings of live meaty foods like baby brine shrimp, rotifers or copepods. Even expert reefers have difficulty keeping them alive for more than several months. (And that's a shame because, IMHO, the non-photosynthetic gorgonians are the most beautiful.) Unlike sponges, which have micro-channels in their structure (which trap air, leading to tissue necrosis), gorgonians are not sensitive to being in contact with air. Hope this helps. ______ I forgot to mention that even photosynthetic gorgonians benefit from being fed small meaty foods once every week or two if they are to be kept in excellent health. I've have good luck feeding mine Oyster Feast, Reef Frenzy, and Cyclop-eeze. Link to comment
Amy Posted March 17, 2015 Author Share Posted March 17, 2015 Perfect thank you for all that info. I have one now since Friday, it was open right away but yesterday it did not open up very much at all. Saturday I did feed a little cyclopeez and plan on doing that once a week. However I do have to frag it as its just about to tall for my tank so I will be doing that later on today. They sure are neat I was always scared to have one but will see how well this one does for me. She had both kinds labelled as the Purple Whip but I think the one I chose was the Purple Bush as the branches I will call them are more stiff and straight out to the side the Whip was more droopy but I could be wrong just all picture I have seen look like the Purple Bush. Link to comment
Livewreck Posted March 17, 2015 Share Posted March 17, 2015 You're welcome. If you post a picture I can help identify it. Gorgonians are very easy to frag. (Personally, I like the look of multiples of the same coral rather than one of each variety, and fragging gorgonians is a great way to achieve that look. It's also dramatic to have several gorgonians of one species and just one of another... but that's all a matter of personal taste.) You'll need a small bowl of tank water, a drill, a piece of rubble rock and any gel glue. Drill a small hole in a piece of rubble. About an 1/8" diameter and 1/4" deep should work fine. Just snip off the branch you want to frag. Next, scrap off about 1/4" or so of the tissue at the base of the frag. You'll find a hard center core beneath the outer tissue. It will then look like a frag on a stick - sort of like a popsicle. The reason you'll want to scrape off the outer tissue is to prevent tissue decay at the base of the frag when it is glued in place. Put a dab of glue inside the pre-drilled hole and insert the frag. Then place the glued frag into a shallow bowl of tank water and hold the frag upright. Only the base of the glued frag needs to be in the water. The reason you place it in the water is to keep the bottom of the glued frag from heat damage because the glue heats up while setting. It also accelerates the setting of the glue. Allow the glue to set for a minute or so and then place the frag in you tank - or glue the rubble (upright) to your live rock. (Keep in mind that these gorgonians like to grow in a straight up direction - not tilted or angled off to the side.) I just recently got back into the hobby after a several year "dry period." At present, I have only one gorgonian frag in a newly set of 10 gallon mixed reef. But I will be ordering more next week. I'll post new pictures after I finish my scape and have added my new animals. Link to comment
Amy Posted March 17, 2015 Author Share Posted March 17, 2015 Oh I would love to see yours for sure. I will take a picture of mine when the lights are on so you can ID it for me. Thanks for the tips on the fragging, its very close to what I was reading on how to do it but your instructions are better. My tank is just a little pico 3 gallon with a Ricordea Garden I love the look of the bit of height the Gorgonians give. Will post later on today for sure. Many Thanks..... Link to comment
Amy Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 Sorry for the crappy picture, but it gives you an idea of what it looks like. The past few days no polyps have been out except the bottom area. I am going to frag it today now that I have the glue its to tall for the tank. Picture would help I guess, sorry about that. Link to comment
uwdanno Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Not sure it it's been discussed but it could be shedding. Mine has polyps that go into hiding for a week. Then poof, sheds and polyps are back. Sorry if this was already discussed but there are a couple TL;DR post in here! Also +1 to mo flo Link to comment
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