Green Hydnophora issue

[iceman86]

i know there are a few people on here with these corals so mabye i can get some help. When i bought it, it had amazing polyp extension. it was fuzzy all around and it slowly went down from there in the course of a month. The only polyp extension i get now is mostly on the tips and it isnt much either. The coral has already doubled in size since i got it a few months ago so i dont think its in danger. I know they like a lot of flow so i put a powerhead pointing right at it and it didnt change anyhing.

My water parameters are also good. Everything in the tank is healthy and grows at a really fast rate.

Any ideas?

[daniella3d]

Mine bearely have flow and it is always very much inflated.

Maybe it has too much flow? any fish nipping at it?

No matter what I put them they are always inflated. I have one in all my aquariums.

The only time mine retract is when I touch it.

i know there are a few people on here with these corals so mabye i can get some help. When i bought it, it had amazing polyp extension. it was fuzzy all around and it slowly went down from there in the course of a month. The only polyp extension i get now is mostly on the tips and it isnt much either. The coral has already doubled in size since i got it a few months ago so i dont think its in danger. I know they like a lot of flow so i put a powerhead pointing right at it and it didnt change anyhing.

My water parameters are also good. Everything in the tank is healthy and grows at a really fast rate.

Any ideas?

[whatcaneyedo]

What types of food do you feed? I've observed mine swelling when I add frozen foods to the aquarium.

[Zoaelite]

I would say consider yourself lucky, hydnophora has one of the most powerful stings out there quickly killing near by colonies. To have it healthy & growing with little polyp extension is a good thing in my books.

[whatcaneyedo]

Quickly kill nearby colonies? Not in my experience. As long as you provide it with 1" of clearance you'll be fine and your colonies will be safe.

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh109/whatcaneyedo/Picture1922.jpg

[Aquattro]

Quickly kill nearby colonies? Not in my experience. As long as you provide it with 1" of clearance you'll be fine and your colonies will be safe.



Agreed, I've always kept it in close quarters and never had issues.

[whatcaneyedo]

On occasion I'll loose an inch of montipora to my colony but the dead area quickly becomes grown over again. The only circumstance where you'd really need to worry is with tiny frags placed adjacent to the colony or toppled coral landing on it. But that basically goes for any coral.

The conditions mine is under are: 250W Phoenix 14K DE, moderate flow, 78 F, 1.025, pH 8.1-7.8, Ca 450ppm, Alk 10 DKH, Mg 1400ppm.

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh109/whatcaneyedo/31.jpg

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh109/whatcaneyedo/Horn.jpg

[Zoaelite]

Considering that many SPS will grow right into their neighbors and begin warfare at that point I would consider a 1" growth inhibition zone to be fairly large.

[iceman86]

Mine bearely have flow and it is always very much inflated.

Maybe it has too much flow? any fish nipping at it?

No matter what I put them they are always inflated. I have one in all my aquariums.

The only time mine retract is when I touch it.

no there isnt to much flow because before i put the powerhead facing it, it was in an area with little flow and there was no difference.

The only fish i have in the tank are a couple clowns and they stay away from it. once in a while i catch a little crab walking on it but i dont think that is the issue

[iceman86]

What types of food do you feed? I've observed mine swelling when I add frozen foods to the aquarium.

i feed pellets and frozen food too but there isnt any difference.

[iceman86]

I also dont have any colonies too close either, they are at least 2" apart.

[iceman86]

could it possibly be my lighting? Im running 120watts of cree LED's. The tank is a 35 gallon cube. 60 watts of blue running at 100% and 60 watts of white running at 80%

[Aquattro]

I've had mine under low light and very intense light, always had polyps. Just give it time, sounds like it's fine otherwise.

[KPG007]

I have a Hydro and, as far as stinging, he will let other coral grow within roughly 5cm of him before he stings, but when he does, wow! He will kill over 15 cm (at lest 2') away from him.

As for polyp extention - this is actually a great topic. I have great growth and color on my colonies, but in many cases very little PE (compared to when I bought them). I know flow has some bearing, as does light, and tank conditions, but for the life of me, I can't pin it down to one thing. I do notice better PE after a water change though. Maybe old water is causing issues?