Sea Whips?

[lbannie]

Are sea whips easy or difficult to take care of? Do they need special lighting? What's your opinion?

 

[saxman]

Generally speaking, gorgonians aren't EZ to keep. They require lots of flow to keep them free of nuisance algae. Many species are azooxanthellate, so they require feedings by the aquarist, while others can rely on light and supplemental feedings.
Too many genera/species of gorgs have the same common name, so a pic or binomial name of the critter in question will help us help you.
Bottom line is they're all pretty difficult to care for.

 

[juice28]

Quote:
Originally Posted by lbannie http:///forum/thread/383608/sea-whips#post_3356320
Are sea whips easy or difficult to take care of? Do they need special lighting? What's your opinion?
fairly easy if you know how to take care of them but are not for the beginner due to their specialized care. they are not photosynthetic typically so most do require feeding. I am fortunate enough that i have a high nutrient level in my tank(not high nitrates/ites) so i have enough "coral" food floating in my tank to support my yellow finger gorgonian and my purple stereonethphya( semi photosynthetic carnation) along with the rest of my tank without dosing anything. they say hi flow to prevent algae, gorgonians tend to grow in deeper water so they should be placed in the darker areas imo. Well, generally broad fan shaped means shallower water than tall skinny i have a piece of mine under a ledge that is doing awesome feeds 24-7 and is n fairly low water mvmt. ironically the big piece that is exposed to t 5 lights has to be under my outlet for my skimmer which has a powerhead next to it to keep algae off of it. it feeds often but not all at once, probably b/c my lmwr blenny keeps it clean but, algae needs light. just a theory but i think gorgonians and algae are natural enemies so to speak.