Beginner Corals - Leathers

Ronald Brown · Feb 27, 2017

Very nice read. I have an umbrella leather as my first one mixed with some zoas, green star polyp, xenia and a clown fish. The leather isn't liking my tank at the moment for some reason. All of my tests are 0 but the nitrates which are about 10

melypr1985 · Feb 27, 2017

Ronald Brown said:
Very nice read. I have an umbrella leather as my first one mixed with some zoas, green star polyp, xenia and a clown fish. The leather isn't liking my tank at the moment for some reason. All of my tests are 0 but the nitrates which are about 10

What kind of flow do you have it in? They do like higher flow. They can also sometimes retract their polyps and stay that way for a bit because of a move (if it is a new addition). It will usually shed the mucus buildup and the polyps will come back out again.

Ronald Brown · Feb 27, 2017

At the moment moderate to low flow because the others don't like the higher flow.

melypr1985 · Feb 27, 2017

Ronald Brown said:
At the moment moderate to low flow because the others don't like the higher flow.

You might just give it a bit of time. If it doesn't perk up in a few days, then you can try upping the flow a little or look at coral warfare from the corals that are near it or "upstream" of it.

ProjectAnemone · Feb 27, 2017

I have a field of the neon green sinularias and toadstools in my anemone system. I sold 46 to an LFS a few months ago, it's almost time to try doing it again.

melypr1985 · Feb 27, 2017

ProjectAnemone said:
I have a field of the neon green sinularias and toadstools in my anemone system. I sold 46 to an LFS a few months ago, it's almost time to try doing it again.

Wow! Impressive

CenlaReefer · Feb 27, 2017

miyags said:
Nice write M. I just started collecting leathers again. Aqua SD had some killer leathers in R2R sale.

How about come pics?

CenlaReefer · Feb 27, 2017

Meredith, that was a great article!

Here is my 10 gallon toadstool dominant tank from yesterday. The larger toadstools in pictures 2 and 3 are the same. The one in the upper right hand corner is the parent colony. I like how they can look radically different under varied lighting. I love this little tank and these corals.

Oneofayykind · Feb 27, 2017

What would you check for first if your leather wasn't opening and its tentacles weren't coming out or was opening but the tentacles weren't coming out? I do weakly water changes of 5 gallons on a 29 gallon biocube and mine has been like that for at least a month.

melypr1985 · Feb 27, 2017

Eye Candy Corals said:
Meredith, that was a great article!

Here is my 10 gallon toadstool dominant tank from yesterday. The larger toadstools in pictures 2 and 3 are the same. The one in the upper right hand corner is the parent colony. I like how they can look radically different under varied lighting. I love this little tank and these corals.

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That's beautiful! Yes, I'm a huge fan of toadstools especially. I've also found it amazing how different the same one can look under different conditions.

Oneofayykind said:
What would you check for first if your leather wasn't opening and its tentacles weren't coming out or was opening but the tentacles weren't coming out? I do weakly water changes of 5 gallons on a 29 gallon biocube and mine has been like that for at least a month.

I would look to see if it's waxy first. If it is, or has been for this long then flow is the problem. If not, then something is making it not happy. I would check for coral warfare and water quality next. These guys are tough, but they will still look like doo doo if the ALK is spiking and dropping for example.