xenia question

[bugsy]

Hi, I have been reading some posts about Xenia. I would like to know the following:

 

Do they harm other corals and if so which ones?

 

What type of lighting do they need?

 

Any special feeding?

 

What fish or inverts will eat them?

 

bugsy

[silversurfer]

xenia is really hardy. they do now harm any corals, actually corals can harm it. xenia is one of the few corals that dont need any feeding, just light. pc light is good enough. it should thrive under that light and not grow at a rate that is too fast. i have heard of certain snails/hermits eating xenia, but i havent experienced it myself. the only problem is that they can grow really fast under the right conditions.

[bugsy]

Thank you so much for the info

 

Bugsy

[DSparks]

From my personal experience . . .

 

When I first added my xenia it shrunk up for about a week. I thought I was losing the little rascal. Then, all of a sudden, it perked back up. It's pulsing constantly, and is growing like a weed. My water params stay in great shape. I'm dosing with B-ionic, and I have a 70W MH over my 10 gallon. Water changes once a week help out quite a bit.

 

PM me if you have any specific questions. I think it's a great choice as a beginner coral. Just be ready to keep it under control if you don't want to have a large patch of it.

[B16A2NR]

Also do frequent waterchanges or begin dosing iodine, Iodine is VITAL if you want to keep xenia along with leathers healthy and get more rapid growth . I will agree xenia is a hardy coral, however they will be one of the first corals to show signs of stress when water temp, pH, or salinity rapidly fluctuate. Their pulsing will stop, or they will curl up into a ball, or each "tenticle" will pulse off sync. Check out www.garf.com "frugal-reefer" section on xenia for tons of info.

 

Todd

[pos_user]

Here is a question that will help me and others I'm sure. After drip aclimating the xenia for about 45 minutes...it has been in the tank for about 4 hours. It will open up all of its "tenticles" for about a few seconds, then shrivel back up and slowly pulse, then open back up again.

 

My water params are solid. Nitrates are my only issue, but still low at 9-10ppm. Salinity at 1.025, and Temp is 79. Im wondering if these guys will open up fully after a few more hours or if there is something wrong here.

 

I'm hoping it takes a day or two for them to be fully open and comfortable with its new environment.

 

it was only a 10 dollar frag, but still...i dont want to see it go for no reason.

[pos_user]

here is what mine looks like by the way.

 

 

[tonym]

What I've found to be the vital parameter for my Xenia is Alk. If my Cal drops it seems to have no effect on it, but if my Alkalinity drops below 9 the Xenia shrivels. I'm a n00b to the chemistry of a reef so I'm still learning. One thing I have found is Seachem calcium sucks.

[B16A2NR]

From personal experience, even in perfect water parameter tanks xenia has an adjustment period anywhere from hours to days. Give it some time, it shouldn't get any worse.

[pos_user]

cool, im hoping that all goes well. I have heard that these guys can grow and spread quickly under great water conditions. Would be nice to see it grow so I can give some out to my friends and family.

 

and TonyM, im in the same boat as you. I've had FW for about 10 years and finally decided to go with SW. All water parameters are pretty much the same with the exception of salinty and added elements for coral growth and food. A 10 gallon is tough as well, leaves little room for error but I think I got it finally under control.

[DSparks]

Mine took about a full week to come around. I really believed the little guy was going to die, but he perked up on about the 6th or 7th day.

 

Don't worry pos, I'm sure it'll perk up soon and then grow like a weed.