zoos declining in mass.

[lazypinoy]

yay havent been on in about 3 months. but suddenly my 125 tank has a problem. The zoos are melting for some reason, they stop opening then melft away for a few days. im not sure if its a parasite because zoos from diffrent corners of the tank about 4 feet away from each other are haveing the same effects
params
phos-0
nitrate-10
nitrite-0
Amm-0
PH-8.1
water gravity- 1.026
calcium- 400
Alklinity- 9DKH
magnesium-1250
Zoos appear not to be opening, though some are. some have deceased in size or not open at all. it looks like they are melting away. picutures will be up soon.
i have no idea what it is and assume it hase something to do with something in the water i cant test for. any ideas? ive increased carbon (8cups) and skimming.
oh yeah happy holidays.

 

[yosemite sam]

Zoo pox, perhaps? I had one small section of zoos (all of one specific color morph on a rock with several different morphs) do the same thing a few weeks ago, but it hasn't spread. I have heard that one of the suspected causes could be seasonal changes, as people often report this problem between November and January. Has your tank been getting cold at night?
Someone posted a link to a potential cure on my local reef club page a few weeks ago. The cure and directions are from a dedicated zoanthid page, but I believe they used a fish antibiotic called Furan. If you search the web for zoa pox and furan, you'll probably find it. I haven't tried it, and the site only lists one person's experiments and results (which were positive), but it might be worth checking out.

 

[flricordia]

Very sorry to hear it. Wish someone had somthing definate to tell you. I lost a bunch some time back with the same simptoms. Never found out what it was. Toward the end and after trying dips and changes in water parm. I finally just pulled any that looked to be troubled and in so doing I believe that is how I saved the remaining. Almost seemed to be a chain reaction type thing going on, much like yuma ricordias when in close proximity to each other and one starts to melt away.
Unfortunatly, though I was able to save some, I lost all my favorites. Now, if I see a zoanthid rock at the LRS that even has a few that are not opened, I pass them up. And if I observe any in my tank that don't want to open longer than 3-4 days with no obvious signs of stress from correctable and known measures, out they come. Leason learned.
Hope you don't loose them all. I would suggest that if you have another tank around, set it up and put all the zoos that seem infected into it away from any that still look OK. Don't even ask yourself 'maybe this one is OK', if any doubt, get them out.

 

[bigarn]

Also keep an eye out for sundial snails .... just covering another possibility.

 

[reeffreakgeek]

Check your colony of zoos for nudibranches,sundial snails and/or spiders.A crustacean thats look like a bad-ass jumping spider.I forget its actual name.Be ready to freshwater dip and QT if you find some.They are very tiny so you will need to check them closely.