Is this frogspawn healthy?

[cmack]

I got this a few days ago, It has yet to fully open. I have noticed that the top of the branch on the right has turned a bit white, it could just be that the coraline came off for some reason. Also there is some form of "growth" on each stem - blackish brown color. On the stem on the right, it is kind of loose from positioning the coral in the tank, the one on the left seems like it is on pretty good. Is this something harmful?
Current param...
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5
Calcium 420
KH 8.96
Lighting is 4 110w VHO (2 actinic, 2 daylight), 90 Gal tank
The coral is at the bottom of the tank, moderate water flow.

 

[chinnyr]

They look so small.Did you ever see them more open in the store before you brought them home?Might be that they had almost completly died back at one time and are trying to make a comeback.I'm only saying this because of all the coraline growing all over the branches and not any visable fleshy looking part at the tops.Check the other post here about Frogspawn.There are alot of pics attached to the thread to give you some ideas.

 

[jonthefb]

the corla head onthe right doesnt look so good the one on the left looks fine. on the left head you can see how the brown tissue covers a portion of the external skeleton, this is how it should look, but is devoid on the head to the right. did your lfs just get it in? this is common to these types of corals when they are mishandled during shipping. keep your eye on it and if it starts to develop a slimy brown substance i would cut the bad head off. just give it time and optimal water conditions and it should be allright!
good luck
jon

 

[cmack]

If i need to cut it off, how is this done? What do you use to cut it, and where should the cut be made? (i'm assuming at the base where the 2 divide)

 

[jonthefb]

correct, just get a sharp pair of scissors, and make sure you run them through boiling water or a flame first (to sterilize them) and then just cut it off at teh base where the two divide. the actual animal only resides in the top level of the skeleton where the polyps are out. everythign below that is just dead calcium carbonate skeleton, so it doesnt hurt anythign to cut it there!
good luck
jon

 

[cmack]

Just an FYI,
I dont have a good LFS, so I am forced to buy online. I purchased these and a candy cane at the same time. The Candy Cane looks great...

 

[cmack]

Update....
Today the polyps didn't come out of either branch, and it looks much worse. All params are fine, same as yesterday. I moved it up to the middle of the tank thinking it needed more light, but still nothing changed!!!
Any suggestions on how to possibly save this??

 

[spsfreak100]

That's not a frogspawn, it's a Hammar Coral. You can tell by the shape of the polyps. Frogspawn will have multiple tips on the tentacles, Hammars will have a hammar shaped tip.

 

[jonthefb]

man thats tough. it does look much worse with even more tissue recession. make sure it has a moderate current on it and medium to high lighting and pray and see what happens!
good luck
jon

 

[cmack]

So should I keep it and try to save it, or call the online distributer and send it back?

 

[banshee]

Looks like a Hammer to me, too.

 

[ryebread]

I too was thinking that was a hammer coral.

 

[cmack]

So i could probably call the company and B*tch them out that they sent me the wrong coral and now it is dying...
See what they say???
Or should I "suck it up" cause hammers are cool corals, and try to save it?

 

[azonic]

you wont save it once the tissue has receeded that much. Call them and tell them they sent you a branching hammer coral when you ordered a frogspawn. Also include that is was looking very very poor on arrival and now has 75%+ of it's tissue eroded. I'm pretty sure they will have to send you the coral you ordered.

 

[flamingkingofhe]

as soon as i saw it i said to my self thats not frog. thats hammer

 

[cmack]

So I contacted the reseller, and they said they are very sorry for any problems etc..
I can keep the hammer and try to nurse it back to health, and they are sending me out a frogspawn free of charge (they are even paying shipping).
Not bad as long as the frogspawn is healthy....

 

[sduda]

Since they were so cool about taking care of it, can you share where you bought them?

 

[cmack]

I didn't buy it from this site, but if you send me an e-mail, I'll give you the info...
cmack@wileworld.com

 

[quazi]

Glad to hear they are taking care of you. More MOFS should be so generous.
Also, if your tank can take it, let it alone and if it dies, let it be "live rock." You can use it as a base to glue frags on.
Incidently, Instead of using scissors to cut these types of coral for fragging, just "snap" the branch off. I do that all the time with my frogspawn, which grows at an incredible rate