bleaching coral

Question
I recently purchased some coral frags of hard corals as well as a pink birds from a very well established tank.  I placed it in our well established tank with several other corals (mushrooms, brain, toadstools, xanthia, leathers) and the new coral is all starting to bleach.  The other corals are fine.  I compared water parameters with him and our temp is a little higher (ours is 80 degrees) but the only other difference is he had t5 lighting, I have metal halides.  I did NOT introduce the corals slowly to the new light.  Do you think that is what is doing it?  All other levels are in check.  Any thoughts?  How long can a frag be white before it is dead? A couple frags are completely white.  Do I take them out of the tank?

Answer
Hello Jill,

Moving into SPS is an excersize.  You need to start off slowly and work your way up to it.

One of the first things to accept is that some corals will do well in some tanks and others wont.

What works for you wont work for others on the same corals..  It is a true mystery.

I have heard that Birdsnest corals are easy and hardy, BUT, I can not keep them, and ihave tried four times now...

My sugesstion is to find a stag corals, Acropora florida or other similar thick branched corals.  You might also try some chalice corals as well.

But just get one of each... And wait for a bit. IF after a month they havent died, then get another couple.

After a few months, if you want to be bold, and buy a larger colony or mid colony, then go for it...

But make these additions slowly, so you can see what you did and maybe what you did wrong...

One of the problems may be that the corals do well, then you do some routine maintenance and upset the corals inthe process... you wouldnet want to do that with a tank load of corals after spending your income tax refund now will ya???

As for what i do with my dead corals... (dang, you are presumptious arent you???), hehehehe  I toss them into my sump...  they are calcium, plain and clear....  They came from teh water, they go back to it...


If the corals has lost it's flesh, it is dead.  If it is losing it flesh on one part of it, it is dead... it wiil die...  you cant save it...  

You might be able to save a tip her or there, but for the most part, once the animal/polyp goes into stress, it shares that info or that problem with all the other animlas in that skeleton.

I have taken a branch off a dieing coral, about 5 inches from the area that was peeling, and as the coral continued to die off, as soon as the flesh peeled right under where i broke off the piece, then that piece died too...

It was ll timed together somehow.

Anyways, be patient.  if you ahve lps and softies then you are doing something right.  


Bill