Can my Goniopora be saved?

nemo's mom

nemo's mom

Member
I've had it for 4 months and my clowns have mated with it. It stopped extending about 2 weeks ago and half of it it's dead....just a rock looking skeleton. The other half is still green. I moved it from the sandbed to the top of the tank into a medium flow. Can it be saved?
 
mrdc

mrdc

Active Member
All I know is that Goniopora is a hard coral to keep and dies on a lot of hobbyists after a few months.
 
wla1610

wla1610

Member
Originally Posted by Nemo's Mom
I've had it for 4 months and my clowns have mated with it. It stopped extending about 2 weeks ago and half of it it's dead....just a rock looking skeleton. The other half is still green. I moved it from the sandbed to the top of the tank into a medium flow. Can it be saved?
Having your clowns host it is not good either. They are very rough at times. My guess is that you can't keep them away from the goni. I have a Goni in my tank with a true percula and the only reason I've been able to keep it alive is because I also have a maroon clown in an anemone. I put the goni near the maroon so the maroon keeps the perc away.
When I had the goni on the other side of the tank and I had the same problem. The clown wanted to host it. If you can get your clown to host a plate coral or something else you can probably try a Goni again but i'm guessing yours is sliding downhill and will not be saved. As the guy above said, they are a very hard coral to keep.
 
nemo's mom

nemo's mom

Member
That's what I figured. I had a colt that started melting and was able to save it by moving it. I didn't think I would get this lucky more than once. I have an anemone in my tank but none of my clowns ever hosted it....
 
nemo's mom

nemo's mom

Member
I never took the "skeleton" out of the tank and it looks like it's coming back. I'm seeing little light green "sprouts" coming out of the wholes....Has anyone ever witnessed this????
 
bach

bach

Member
My clown has lost her mate 2x due to my mistakes and has become infacuated with the goniporia. this thread is a big let down, I was hoping they could help each other out. I don't want to get rid of either of them. Lets hope they can work together....but I have noticed the goni is about 60% of it's original size.
 
scsinet

scsinet

Active Member
Percula clowns are tough to get to host anything, they don't really host the easier anems... the anemone they really like is H. magnifica but they are really hard to keep.
IMO, if you want to reproduce clowns hosting anemones in your tank, get a BTA and a Maroon Stripe Clown.
It's not an exact science though, percs may host in anything (obviously as you've seen)
 
nemo's mom

nemo's mom

Member
Don't throw it out!! I counted 16 new "sprouts" on mine yesterday. I'm ordering new bulbs this week and I'm hoping it will fully regenerate!!
 
reef bug

reef bug

Member
I made the mistake of buying my goni before researching. I fell in love at first sight and had to have it. The LFS where I bought my goni is so critical of their customers that they won't let you buy a fish until you pass their 20 question interview. I assumed that surely a LFS that cares so much for their fish would never sell an animal that is fated for doom???
I learned my lesson. Nothing comes home with me until I have done research to ensure its survival.
As for the gonio, I am not an expert but a couple of things seemed to help mine...
1. Invert target food. It's thicker and doesn't float away when feeding. My Goni seemed to improved when I started to use this.
2. The coral wont eat it its retracted. I cut a 2-liter soda bnottle in half and made a funnel/dome cover. I cover the coral for short periods and when it relaxes/opens, I shoot food into the dome over the goni using a baster or the target food applicator. The dome does two things....gives the goni a break from the clowns and keeps the food more localized allowing the coral time to eat...very slow process. After the coral appears to be done eating, I uncover it.
I hope this is of some use to you. Good luck!
 
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