Free Corals

[reewik]

I went to the LFS yesterday to see what came in. They has a birds nest that came in looking kind of rough. the owner was going to take it out and place it as decoration because most if it was withering awy. I told him I would take it. So he gave that colony to me. We were walking around looking at the other corals and he asked me if I wanted to try out the hammer too. The polyps are not fully extended and the snin was receding. I have taken them home and they are in the tank. Lets hope for the best .. The birds nest, I dont know but the hammer is a maybe. What do you folks think?

[Reefland]

Well I know one thing, if they do make it in your tank it will be a great feeling for you! Getting a sick coral or fish and nursing them back to health is one of the joys if you ask me, all you can do though is provide it the best conditions possible and hope for the best.

Without seeing them I am with you, the birds nest is probably a goner but the hammer just might pull through.

Scott Z.

[reewik]

Sorry Forgot to resize and add the pict, added now.

[Reefland]

Ok, now that we have some pictures, my thoughts are the same. The birdnest is definitely a goner. You might try and cut one of the branches off to the left as a frag and see what happens but I think your ought of luck there. The hammer appears very promising though, keep it in some flow and moderate lighting.

Scott Z.

[reewik]

I know, but even the flesh looks rough now. That pic was last night. The hammer is on the bottom and get mod current right now. I really hope I can nurse it back to good health. then my concern will be is it to big for the tank? lol

[Wind]

hammer seem it will.. birds nest. is like bleached away....

well never give up!!!...

[scubadude]

Well I know one thing, if they do make it in your tank it will be a great feeling for you! Getting a sick coral or fish and nursing them back to health is one of the joys if you ask me........
Scott Z.

WORD!!! Very kewl of you to try your hand @ sick corals reewik, and even kewler of your LFS manager to give them to you. If the hammer gets better but too big for your tank take it back to the LFS after its healthy looking and get wat you really want The LFS manager should have raised his bar of respect for you up a notch!

keep us informed on how they turn out....and dont give up on the birdsnest even if t does go all white. You dont have other SPS in your tank do you? sometimes you can get a triggered response to your other corals and they could start going downhill from the birdsnest (usually an SPS )

[reewik]

I do have other sps, I really do not want to have this one spread to other should I yank it?

[Poseidon]

I agree with Scott here, Frag the Birdnest and get rid of the worst part. I think it will have a better chance of "regenerating" if it has a smaller area to heal.

[scubadude]

I do have other sps, I really do not want to have this one spread to other should I yank it?

If you see the skin color simulating a peeling look to it then I would pull the whole piece (try not to agitate too much while removing...maybe even turn all flow off while removing) if the white area still has polyp extension then chances are you are ok and it will come back. If you get a chance to get the new FAMA marine annual magazine Eric Borneman has an excellent article on diseases etc. You can read up on SDR (shut down reaction) or RTN (rapid tissue necrosis) as well as other problems. Another suggestion is to put it in your sump if you want to get it away from your main tank but still give it a chance while still somewhat isolating it.

[kevinpo]

I would not do anything with the birdnest except watch it closely. If condtions are good in the tank it will turn pink on the area with tissue remaining. This type of coral has a very dificult time regrowing tissue over the dead areas and it's best to cut the dead branches off later once it becomes stable (in a few weeks). Dark micro algae usually covers the dead area very quickly on this coral but stops at the live tissue. I will post some pictures of one of mine tonight or tomorrow morning to show what they look like in a month or so.

Fragging the good branches is also an option but sometimes the added stress kills them.

Regards,
Kevin

[kevinpo]

Here is the picture I promised. This coral was snow white when it came in 4 weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it will make it now. I just left it alone. I may have to trim off the algae overgrown branches for cosmetic reasons. I'll give it a few more weeks to see if it can fight off the algae.

Regards,
Kevin

[reewik]

Thanks all, the birds nest did not make it. I am also having a herd time with the hammer. Psrt of the hammer started to die so I broke the skeleton into 2 different pieces and took out the bad stuff. When I got home today the smaller piece was on the outs. I have the larger chunk still intact for now. We will see. I really like the birds nest and will have another soon I think. This time just a frag to grow it from scratch.

[Minh Nguyen]

Here is the picture I promised. This coral was snow white when it came in 4 weeks ago. I'm pretty sure it will make it now. I just left it alone. I may have to trim off the algae overgrown branches for cosmetic reasons. I'll give it a few more weeks to see if it can fight off the algae.

Regards,
Kevin

Birdnest does not encrusting well. You will likely need to frag, and cut off the dead part.