What's happening to my xenia??

I

iluvfish

Guest
I have been on vacation for a week and just got back. I had a neighbor girl take care of my tank. Only thing she did was top off my drip system w/ RO water and feed my fish every other day. The lights are on timers and everything else seems fine. But look at my xenia! It is shrinking. I did a water change the next night after coming home - but even before that my nitrates were only 25 (about where they usually run)
Anyone have any other ideas??:confused: Here's my before and after pictures of my xenia.
 
I

iluvfish

Guest
No tangs. I have snails, hermit crabs, a clown fish, a wrasse, a royal gramma and a pajama cardinal. I saw some of the snails (turbos) up by it, could they be the culprits?
 
cindyski

cindyski

Active Member
wow what a difference, i had mine close and after it opened again it got bigger, but you are missing some, i hope you find the culpret and let us know!
 
cindyski

cindyski

Active Member
just my luck too, i have someone watching my tank when i go on vacation soon :thinking: maybe i'll just stay home and let the family go while i watch the fish..........
 
I

iluvfish

Guest
Any chance she's selling frags

maybe i'll just stay home and let the family go while i watch the fish
:D :D LOL:D :D
I actually considered staying home myself........it is so hard to be gone and just worry about the tank! I don't think she knows enough about fish to even know what a frag is. So I'm pretty sure it wasn't the neighbor!
I'll keep watching......let me know if anyone else has had this problem and know the culprit please!
 
I

iluvfish

Guest
I think it is my snails! I knocked a couple off again last night. Anyway........does anyone know of a way to protect my xenia without having to remove my snails? Is there a barrier of some kind I can put around it?
 
007

007

Active Member
I have noticed that my xenia is not necessarily shrinking, however, I noticed that some of the individual feathers of the polyps are missing on quite a few of the polyps . . . . although I dont have nearly the loss that you have.
What makes you think that it is snails? What kind of snails?
 
I

iluvfish

Guest
They are just turbo snails (and small ones at that.) But they are the only things that I find around it. None of the fish or hermit crabs even go near them. I don't know what else to think.:notsure:
 
007

007

Active Member
More than likely it is not the snails . . . they are probably just scavenging for food.
 
gypsie32

gypsie32

Member
I have a situation close to yours, but I am keeping an eye on my 2 large emerald crabs. I also have turbo's that get next to mine but I do not see how they eat them. Just curious do you add anything to your tank such as nutriants for the xenia?
 
I

iluvfish

Guest
Just curious do you add anything to your tank such as nutriants for the xenia?
I just add DT's. I do have one emerald crab, but haven't seen him near the xenia. I'll keep my eye out though. Thanks!
 
007

007

Active Member
I am willing to bet that the emerald is the culprit. I had an emerald devour an entire colony in one night . . . needless to say I got rod of that crab quick, and I will never have another emerald in a reef tank again.
 
jugger

jugger

Member
i agree i also had a emeral that was eating xenia and ZOOs.... but the worst of all was my old arrow crab.... he loved xenia
 
rsd

rsd

Member
I have had encrusting Xenia and the basic Xenia in my tank for 3 years now. Only 2 creatures have taken major bites out of my Xenia population.
The first was a long spine urchin. Once it started munching on the xenia stalk it would have the entire column gone by mornings. The only other culprit was a very large Green Brittle star. Yes I said Brittle star. I watched him "tent" up over one one night, thought he was just hunting. The next morning most of the xenia was gone and the rest looked bad.
I removed the star since he was hunting my smaller fish and snails. I placed him in plastic bag for transport. When I reached the LFS he had "puked". Lots of little xenia polyps and gunk. The LFS had never heard of it, but I told them what I saw and you couldn't argue with a little puke.
The star now resides in a 250 gal reef tank and has been munching on lots of stuff including the guys xenia ever since... he also has been measured at 17 inches tip to tip.
Oh how my baby grew up to be a monster!
p.s. my emerals... as large as they are... have never touched my xenia.
 
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