Leather Coral Help

[MiltonCastillo]

Today I bought my second coral for my 12 gallon nano cube. It is a finger leather coral - purplelish color. After I acclimated the leather, I put it on top of my LR and it looked great just like at the store. However, after I turned on the lights, the leather started drooping its fingers from their original vertical position to horizontal over the following hour. After a couple of hours the fingers did lift up a little (just barely), but the photo period ended and the lights went off. I went to see it a couple of minutes ago in the dark and I noticed that the fingers had drooped all the way down.

 

Is this normal acclimation for a new finger leather?

 

(By the way, all water parameters are fine).

[silversurfer]

yeah leathers will do that till it establishes itself in the tank. my toadstool did that so i placed it in the sand till it started to grow a bit more then i placed it in the rockwork. try it

[Aiptasia]

Sometimes yes, sometimes no...

 

I've found most leathers are sensitive when first acclimated and need to be placed very low in tanks away from lights for a week or so before final placement.

 

Leathers can shrink up from time to time and shed a waxy looking surface layer to rid themselves of algae, but rarely do they flop over or lose turgidity.

 

Leathers, like most corals, are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrite. When first acclimating any leather, it's a good idea to pour the leather coral into an empty bowl with it's old tank water and add one cup of tank water to the bowl every ten minutes for an hour, pouring off the excess when the bowl gets full, to gradually acclimate the coral to the tank water before transferring the coral to the display tank.

 

Then, the coral should be placed on the substrate, preferrably in a shaded back corner or under a rockwork overhang until it acclimates and looks healthy (fully expanded, spicules). This usually takes a few days to two weeks depending on the change in conditions and adjustments the coral has to make. When it's expanding and looking very healthy, gradually move it to the spot where you want it to be.

[MiltonCastillo]

Thanks guys, I moved the leather to the sand, partly under some LR. The fingers still are down, but some of the polyps look like they are trying to come out on some fingers. I guess I take that as a sign that it is beginning to acclimate to the new surroundings.

[nano_mtl]

MiltonCastillo,

 

Just wanted to know how your leather is doing? I've been having the same problem, it's been in my nano-cube for 2 weeks now and it's still at its shrunken size, still greenish (but I see the pink-purple come through a bit). Tks for the update.

[MiltonCastillo]

nano_mtl:

 

Been the same for 3 weeks. I have moved him twice since the beginning, one at the substrate and now higher on the rock. It seems to have made no change. It is still shrunken and bent over. Some polyps come out during the day, but that is about it. It has been kind of dissapointing. I don't know why it won't straighten up!

[tinyreef]

have you tried increased water flow?

 

have you tried different filtration (i.e. chemical ab/adsorbers)?

 

not knowing exactly which 'finger leather coral' makes the advice harder to give. sinularia-type, lobophytum-type, other?

 

some corals are photosynthetic and others non-photo. some prefer good flow while others near dead stop. some need a surge and for others such a surge would rip them apart.

 

sometimes partially 'blossomed' is the norm for the system involved. others switch photoperiods and almost become nocturnal for some reason.

 

is there any peeling or wrinkling of the skin? i'm actually picturing a sarcophyton-type there but i don't believe that's what you're describing. a pic would help a lot.

[nano_mtl]

Well mine just went through a waxy period - this afternoon I placed it near the water flow and by night time it's already looking better (at least it's not drooping anymore). There is hope...

[MiltonCastillo]

1. There is no peeling or wrinkling of the skin.

2. I don't know the name, but it is purple with fingers that are suppossed to be vertical. I think it is a "special finger leather". It kind of looks like this pic I found on the net:

[tinyreef]

would you call that pic of a coral purple? just wondering the comparison basis. i look at it and say grayish but i can see the purple-ness people would label it as too.

 

does it look like this?

 

or more like this?

[MiltonCastillo]

Definately like the first one, Lobophytom. In fact, I think the picture I attached and the picture you provided are of the species that I have.