Coral Feeding Questions Again

[mrdc]

I feel like I keep beating this topic to death but here I go again. I’m trying to figure out the best way to feed some of my corals. I do know that the best time to feed is when the lights and feeding tentacles are out. However, that is also when the thieves … I mean cleaner shrimps come out. Ok, let me spew out some random thoughts and questions.
How often to feed? I assume twice a week is enough.
What to feed? I have been feeding pellets, PE mysis and now cyclop-eeze powder. I really don’t know how nutritious pellets are for corals but they sure seem to like them. Now when the feeder tentacles come out, I have been squirting cyclop-eeze over the coral. Are the corals really getting anything out of this or should I focus more on bigger foods? The bubble coral has been hard to feed bigger items since the clown that hosts it likes to take away the food.
I also have several frags of favites and acan lords and have yet to see any tentacles so I have just been squirting cyclop-eeze on them hoping they are getting something. I have been meaning to lie my acans more horizontally so I can start feeding them some pellets.
Now my fungia is easy to feed pellets since I can squirt a bunch of them right on its mouth. It has been slow to eat mysis so I have to guard it until it closes its mouth. I was reading in my book yesterday that they require heavy feeding to promote good tissue expansion. Mine hasn’t had great tissue expansion since I bought it so I wonder if I need to feed it more or move it to another place in the tank. The tentacles are always out but the tissue expansion isn’t anywhere close to what my old fungia had. Any thoughts?
And lastly, I have been finding it easy to feed my Trachyphyllia (open brain). How big can these things get and how fast do they grow? I want mine to be healthy but I don’t want it to grow too fast or else it will be too big in its current location.
Well I guess that is it for now.

 

[spanko]

Rather than explain, gonna send you on a reading mission. The first link that pops up has some good information on feeding as do the 7 links located a little better than 1/2 way down the page.
Go here then to the first link that comes up.
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Mything+the+Point%3A+Part+One
And another first link that comes up here;
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Foods%2C+and+fe...ium.Net+Feb+97
And remember Google is your friend.

 

[mrdc]

Thanks. I just printed the material from the first link. Time to read! I did notice the author is the same author of the book I was reading last night.

 

[spanko]

From my standpoint Borneman and Shimek are probably the best go to guys when it comes to coral information. (putting aside any personal problems they may or may not have had)

 

[mrdc]

That's a lot of information to absorb. I read the first two links and plant to read the 7 part feeding series from home.

 

[speg]

It sucks that both of those guys are actually moderators on a different forum. They do give out pretty awesome information and they put it in words that idiots can understand (like me).
It's odd that you haven't noticed any feeder tentacles from the acans. Mine have tentacles out all the time; at night they shrivel (the fleshy part) but the tentacles still stay out.
The favia I had was damaged when I received it and the tentacles never came out. Once it healed it started putting its tentacles out (at night).
I don't like feeding at night so I take a little food and squirt it into the tank and back away for 10-15 minutes and come back. Usually by that time everything has its tentacles out and ready to eat.
Do you have any silversides? A small piece of one thrown into the tank usually really excites all of my critters (and my protein skimmer).
For specific feeding:
Acan - I have fed them mysis and really small pieces of silversides.
Duncans - Anything! lol.
Favia - Larger pieces of plankton or 'broken' pieces of mysis shrimp.
If you have silversides you could probably hand a small piece to your shrimp so they ignore the rest of the food you're adding... that's what I used to do back in the shrimp days

 

[mrdc]

I am going to a LFS tomorrow to get some more mysis and I will trul the silverides. It would be so easy to feed if there weren't thieves. Are duncans the weeds of the coral world!! Man they will eat anything and grow like crazy. I must have 40 plus heads by now. Not sure why the acans aren't putting out tentacles. I've had some before that always did when the lights went out. I plan to add some pellets to them tonight to see what happens.

 

[nikesb]

use a straw to feed them pellets straight into their mouth. my acans have their tentacles out all the time. my feeding goes like this for my lps
wednesday - pellets
saturday - pellets
monday - cyclopeeze
i will soon be feeding rods food - coral food and see how it goes

 

[mrdc]

Do they make a 48" straw? I have a high tank! Are you using the fauna marin pellets? Are you using cyclopeeze powder?

 

[nikesb]

yehp using the fauna marin lps food and the freeze dried powder. as for the straw, try connecting a couple by inseting them end to end

 

[nikesb]

better yet, get some 1/2" pvc and use that haha

 

[speg]

the seasquirt doesn't reach far enough?

 

[mrdc]

I actually will try to find some sort of clear long tubing or pipe. I really have a a great idea right now that I won't go in to until I work out the details.