Somethings eating my xenia!

L

lungfish

Guest
First it went after one of my finger leathers (so I moved the coral)...and now it's eating one stalk of my xenia! Can't find what is doing it! And today I found a valonia (???) growing out of the eaten part, attached to the rock, under the stalk! Last night it looked like it was part of the rock, under the flesh, but today more of the coral is gone, and there it was sticking out!
Are any algae aggressive to soft corals at all? I know there are some boring algae that attack "hard" corals.
Would a brittle star eat a coral? I know they may eat fish (dead or alive up for debate).
Plus now my green finger leather is starting to look pretty poor! Just kind of sagging there.
All the numbers are still good (NH4 0, NO3 0, NO4 0, Ca 450, alk ok, salinity ok).
Any advice??? :confused:
 

tahoe ocean

Member
What fish are in your tank? Some dwarf angels eat xenia, so do damsels. I had a nasty little blue damsel who I had to finally give away once I got xenia. She mowed it down.
 

dskidmore

Active Member
If you're not catching the culprit during the day, it may be nocturnal. Arm yourself with a fashlight with a red ballon over the lit end, and a cup of coffee after lights out. Most nocturnal critters don't see red light too well, so you should be able to spot them with that flashlight.
 
L

lungfish

Guest
4 fish: Purple tang, maroon clown, lawnmower blenny, and a flame angel :notsure:
Maybe he IS the culprit, but I never see him pick at it with the lights on. But sure enough come morning, someone was up for a midnight snack!
Haven't seen anything at night with the flashlight and red plastic...but I haven't camped out all night either.
 

gregvabch

Active Member
i had a flame angel that ate star polyps and feather dusters; who knows what else, i didn't keep him around long enough to find out. good luck catching him....:D
 

tahoe ocean

Member
My flame is a nipper, too. As long as I keep her busy with strips of nori, she leaves everything alone. The day she doesn't get what she wants, she'll pick my brain. I think she's got me trained. fortunately the brain gets irritated, but not harmed.
 
C

capschamp

Guest
my brittle star pics off button polyps that are loose and i see them all between teh rock where he hides. do you have any peppermint shrimp in the tank? they ate my first xenia.
 
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