why is my pulsing xenia pulsing...retarded?

[jonthefb]

any ideas on this one guys? i have three pulsing xenia colonies that pulse...well...retarded. one part of the polyp will contract then the rest will but it doesnt stay in this order, the polyp tentacles, just contract and expand at their own will, there is no organization here, and it looks really weird!
thanks in advance all
jon

 

[javajoe]

what additives do you put in your tank?

 

[jonthefb]

i only add seachems, reef complete(raises calcium) and reef carbonate(raises carbonate alkalinity) and about one a month or so i add 5 mL's of kent's concentrated iodine.
my readigns are as follows:
amm-0
trite-0
trate-0
pH-8.4
KH-11.2
Ca-400ppm
phosphate-between .25 and .5 ppm (i have another thread going as to the accuracy of this)
and thats it!
thanks again
jon

 

[slowest is fastest]

I have hundreds of pieces of the brown xenia elongata in my propagation system and 3 different kinds in my display. The elongata pulses as random as snowflakes fall. Once in awhile they all get together and pulse simutaneously and that is something to watch...almost hypnotizes me every time
My Red Sea Xenia pulse constantly from the base to the tip always together, always from 10 min before the lights come on until half an hour after they go out.
My Pom-Pom xenia must have all the "muscle" in the base of the polyp because it seems to close or pulse at the bottom but the tips just sort of come along for the ride, swaying back and forth randomly despite whether the polyp is opening or closing.
So If your asking why your Xenia pulses irregularly I would say a lot of Xenia does completely random and ever changing.
If you Xenia is new give it some time if it is not and has slowed down or stopped pulsing then it could be lighting, low to no current, nitrates higher than 10 ppm or maybe a trace element (like iodine) unless you have a very demanding bioload, however normal trace elements are usually replaced through regular water changes (with a few exceptions). HTH
SiF

 

[javajoe]

If i understand john, its not individual polyps that are pulsing different from each other, its the same polyps that half pulses, then the other half pulses. is that right?
as for additives, the reason i askedwas that i tried marc weiss's 'coral vital' for about a week, and had a similar thing happen... in addition to a lot of my other corals starting to shrivel.... i did a big water change and wont use marc weiss stuff again.

 

[jonthefb]

java's got it. its not about the whole colony pulsing in sync, its the tentacles of the individual polyps that are half-pulsing. it looks kinda weird, like one tet. will pules, and release, then 2 opposite tents. will pulse and release, and thsi is what happens with the whole colony. kinda weird.
jon

 

[slowest is fastest]

Didin't mean to make a long post off topic
I agree with Javajoe that likely it is some kind of pollutant in the water. Xenia is very good for gauging water quality. When it starts doing poorly generally you can take it as a sure sign that something is going on.
Since you don't add the vinegar and sugar suppliment then I would suggest a water change and some carbon for a day or two.
Have you had any recent losses or done any cutting underwater ? Leather corals and polyps (heck, most corals) release some pretty nasty toxins when cut, damaged or dying. Just a thought.
SiF

 

[javajoe]

are you letting them watch too much tv?
mine only did that during the week i used the coral vital.
not sure what would be causing it in your case...
mine pulse pretty much in unison (at least tentacle to tentacle) and they pulse almost 24 x 7. they will stop and rest for about 1/2 when the lights go out at night, but that's about it.

 

[jonthefb]

i havent had any fish losses, or done any cutting of corals in the tank. Do you think that this could be a reaction to light? the colonies that i have in my tank are in a 20 gal with 130 watts of PC Lighting. They came from my parents 135 thats got 3 250 watt metal halides, plus vho actinics. do you think they might just be adjusting to the light levels? THey look gorgeous and are very healthy, its just the awkward pulsing thats got me confused.
thanks for the replies all,
jon

 

[jonthefb]

does anyone else think it could be lighting differences?
jon

 

[javajoe]

to test your theory on lights-- i left my off yesterday and left them in NO only-- they started to do the same thing! i think you have something here.... i will see if putting them back under the normal light will get them unretarded and post back....

 

[jonthefb]

any luck with the experiment java?
jon

 

[javajoe]

hey jon-- they are normal again afer a day of regular lighting

 

[slowest is fastest]

My Xenia come out of a 125 gl with 3 400 watt MH (20k radium) with 2 160 watt VHO actinics and get moved into a 30 gl breeder with 2x55 watt power compact (smart light bulbs) or into a 40 gal breeder with 4x95 watt VHO ( 2x 03 actinic and 2x 50/50) and 2x55 watt PC (10k bulbs). Finally some end up in my 65gal with only VHO (2x 03 actinic and 2x 50/50) They do change color under different lighting but thats about it IME.
I have never had them change rhythm from downgading the lighting but when I increase lighting they stay closed and just sort of flex for a week or so as they make an adjustment from 110 watts (or less) to 1520 watts in the 125.
Not sure this helps.
Perhaps they just need time to adjust and acclimate to the lighting in your tank. I would give them a week to staighten up.
SiF

 

[jonthefb]

well another problem i have been having is with my Ca levels. when they first went in the tank, my Ca levels were not readable onthe Red Sea Ca Pro test kit. i then got an alk test kit and it too was very low. well after adding seachem raises calcium, and raises carbonate hardness, my ca readign are now within range at 400(still low for my tastes) an dmy KH is at 11.2 i wonder if this could also have anyhting to do with the retarded pulsing. Now with raised ca and alk levels, they are doing much better, sometimes pulsing normally, but other time still go silly. maybe its a combo of the two, low light and low levels. well i plan on supplementing my lighting here in a few weeks with some more pc lights. right now ive got two 65 watt pc's one a 10k bulb, the other a super actinic, for a total of 130 watts of light. i was thinking of addign another 26 watts of light to make it 156 watts on a 20 gallon. what do you all think? yay or nay!
jon