Plate coral

[bseth90]

I have had this long tent. plate coral for 11/2 months now....everything was going great. 2 weeks ago I did a water change and since then he's not coming out. I'm starting to worry about him. Everyone else is out and looking great (clams, hammer, shrooms, leather, to name some). 90 gallon, 5 110 watt vho, overflow with sump. I've got him on the bottom was thinking about moving him....hate to do that though since they're fragile, but I'm at a loss. The tentacles are out 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch..that's it. Sometimes they begin to expand and then nothing. Any ideas?

 

[bigarn]

Hard to say..... but for some reason long tentacled plates don't do as well as short tentacled one's in home aquariums.

 

[bseth90]

Not quite what I was hoping to hear. It was doing so well and then all of the sudden. I doesn't seem to be dying yet and I can still see his "shell" for a better word is still covered, but then its all deflated. A real bummer...I tried feeding it some brine shrimp yesterday...nothing.

 

[melissa v.]

I an sorry i hope your plate gets better, they are my favorite, i would try moving him higher in the tank, and see if that helps, they usually do better closer to the lights.

 

[bseth90]

Thanks. I was thinking the same thing...my last thing to try..otherwise I think it will just be a slow death. It was awesome when fully open.

 

[greatfullreefer]

Long tenticle plates are as stated above next to impossible to keep long term. I had mine if memory serves for a little over a year, one day fine and the next day it didnt come out. Within 2 weeks it was totally disintergrated. My short tenticle however is still thriving. If in fact yours is on the decline be sure to leave the skeleton in the tank as this is the way they reproduce.
Good Luck

 

[bseth90]

I wish I would have known that about the long tentacle. Lesson learned the hard way. Makes me feel bad. I will be sure to leave the skeleton in there...didn't know that. Thanks for the advice

 

[brianrish]

"If in fact yours is on the decline be sure to leave the skeleton in the tank as this is the way they reproduce."
What does that mean? Other plate corals will use the old skeleton? :notsure:
Interesting...please tell me more.

 

[greatfullreefer]

Individual Juvinile plates will begin to grow off the main skeleton.

 

[darknes]

I had a LT Plate coral as well; I'll attack a pic of it. It was doing great, and then one day, it was deflated, and slowly lost all its covering, until all that's left now is the skeleton. I had mine about 4 or 5 months.
GreatFullReefer, do juveniles always grow from the skeleton, and how long does it take? Mine has been dead a few weeks now, and I was going to take the skeleton out.

 

[bseth90]

I'd like to know how long that could take as well. Sorry to hear about your plate as well. Looks a little better today, but I think I'm just wishing.