Do Xenias "split?"

crazyzeus1

crazyzeus1

Member
Do Xenias split to make two "stalks". We have two xenia colonies (small) that we just put in last week. I SWEAR they were both on one stalk. I noticed yesterday that one of our colonies is in two stalks now, & it sure looks like they're farther apart than they were the day before.
Our other stalk seems to be splitting down the middle into two parts. Or maybe I'm just looking a lot more closely because I'm trying to figure out if they're splitting.
Anyone know?
 
speg

speg

Active Member
Yes, thats how xenia multiply. They'll split themselves to move closer to where they'd rather be. Also sometimes when they move somewhere they'll rip most of their body doing the move and the little part left will form a new xenia as well.
 
sweetdawn

sweetdawn

Active Member
no they dont make you loose your mind till they take over your tank and you dont have room for anythin else
 
bigarn

bigarn

Active Member
I don't think they mean "weed" in a bad sense...... rather they grow like weeds. I like them also, but be prepared to do a lot of fragging.
 
crazyzeus1

crazyzeus1

Member
Originally Posted by bigarn
I don't think they mean "weed" in a bad sense...... rather they grow like weeds. I like them also, but be prepared to do a lot of fragging.

What do you do with the frags? Will the LFS buy them back? Do you give them away? I could just never, ever toss them out.
Would it be smart to move one colony on one side of the tank, & put the other small colony on the opposite end of the tank? They're both fairly close to each other &I don't want to end up with Xenia Forrest on the left side of our tank!
 
bigarn

bigarn

Active Member
I end up giving them to other reefers or donateing them to a LFS.... they're pretty stingy about giving store credit but what the heck, it beats just flushing them. You can put them on opposite sides of the tank to prevent them from getting to thick to fast in one area, but believe me they'll spread eventually.

 
crazyzeus1

crazyzeus1

Member
When Xenias get ready to split, do the heads close up? We have a total of 3 stalks now, & one of the stalks is splitting into 3 again. At night, the other two stalks have heads that pulse, but this one stalk is all bunched up & closed more often than not. But then the lights are on & he's open & happy...just odd...
 
1journeyman

1journeyman

Active Member
Mine all close up at night. And mine aren't splitting, they just keep growing new little heads off of the same stalks. Guess they are happy where they are.
 
mudplayerx

mudplayerx

Active Member
They don't close up before they split really. It takes them quite awhile to split. It is more like one potion moves away and leaves some behind. Takes weeks.
The pet stores will usually buy frags that you have because Xenia is very hard to ship without it dying. They can sell your frags fast because every newbie reefer sees the pulsing motion and wants one :) I know thats why I bought mine.
Nine months later I've probably fragged my xenia at least 10 times and made roughly $150 in money/trades.
 
1journeyman

1journeyman

Active Member
Originally Posted by mudplayerx
They can sell your frags fast because every newbie reefer sees the pulsing motion and wants one :) I know thats why I bought mine.
Lol, definitely why I bought mine!
 
diane4

diane4

Member
I think they are neat, I love my xenia. I call my ZZ-Top. Because he is on a top rock and you hear the Z sound in exenia.
I haven't noticed more stalks growing, but I do see the trunks thickening and 1 stalk moved off the smaller rock and onto a bigger rock. They pulse during the light hours and close up at night.
I enjoy my xenia. Hardy animal if it has good water quality and sufficient light. I dose a little iodine once a week, which I have read makes them grow and be happy like nutso.
I also feed on occaision, a medicine dropper full of diluted cyclopeeze - good filter food.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top