Hello all,
I purchased a large frag of (some sort of) sps at the December frag swap that does not look like it's enjoying my tank. It is some kind of monti, looks very similar to this http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=597+1492+2294+3109&pcatid=3109 although with a dark red crust and bright green polyps.
When I introduced the SPS I did a normal temperature and water acclimation. Based on the advice of the LA article above, I placed the frag near the top of my aquarium in a spot with good flow. The first night it looked beautiful, dark red/purple base with bright green polyps fully extended. The next day the polyps were less extended, but colors still looked good. Over the next couple days, I have not seen the polyps extend, and the base has faded to a light red/pink/almost white. It appears to be bleaching, but LA says that this coral can't get too much light, even during acclimation. I have also tested my water daily since acquiring it and all parameters that I can currently test (ammonia,nitrite, nitrate, ph) are excellent. I have 4-5 other sps frags that are all looking healthy.
I would love a recommendation for how to proceed, my instinct is to move a bleaching coral away from the light, but LA tells me different. Does it just need time to adjust? My birdsnest had a similar behavior at first, but eventually adjusted and is happy
I have a 40 gallon tank w/ a 20 sump underneath. LED lighting, not sure on exact specs but has been enough to grow sps thus far. Let me know if any other details of my tank would help diagnose this problem.
I will attempt to post pictures below, thanks in advance for the help!
I purchased a large frag of (some sort of) sps at the December frag swap that does not look like it's enjoying my tank. It is some kind of monti, looks very similar to this http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=597+1492+2294+3109&pcatid=3109 although with a dark red crust and bright green polyps.
When I introduced the SPS I did a normal temperature and water acclimation. Based on the advice of the LA article above, I placed the frag near the top of my aquarium in a spot with good flow. The first night it looked beautiful, dark red/purple base with bright green polyps fully extended. The next day the polyps were less extended, but colors still looked good. Over the next couple days, I have not seen the polyps extend, and the base has faded to a light red/pink/almost white. It appears to be bleaching, but LA says that this coral can't get too much light, even during acclimation. I have also tested my water daily since acquiring it and all parameters that I can currently test (ammonia,nitrite, nitrate, ph) are excellent. I have 4-5 other sps frags that are all looking healthy.
I would love a recommendation for how to proceed, my instinct is to move a bleaching coral away from the light, but LA tells me different. Does it just need time to adjust? My birdsnest had a similar behavior at first, but eventually adjusted and is happy
I have a 40 gallon tank w/ a 20 sump underneath. LED lighting, not sure on exact specs but has been enough to grow sps thus far. Let me know if any other details of my tank would help diagnose this problem.
I will attempt to post pictures below, thanks in advance for the help!