"smoking" Zoanthids???

ChgoGoodGirl · May 31, 2020

So I bought a some zoa frags a couple days ago and got it into my display tank last night. Went down to check out the tank this morning and realized the frag needed to be spun around to be able to view it better. I threw on a glove, stuck my hand in the tank and gave it a quick turn. All of the sudden i notice a couple of the polyps start "smoking" (for lack of a better term) It wasnt stringing or slimy looking at all. It looked very much like when a stomatella snail seeds the tank, only it wasnt a bunch of quick puffs and there was no snail around. Not all the polyps did it it was mostly only the ones that were touched. Wish i had gotten the gloves off and grabed my phone fast enough to get a video, but I didn't.

My question is... Have any of you seen this before? What was happening?

Ive googled it as best I could but could only find 1thread where someone else saw the same thing. The answer were pretty much just blaming an unseen snail. But i swear - I could see it coming from each of the zoa polyps. Also - wasnt brown and stringing so I dont think it was zooxanthellae. Here's a pick of the frag, about an hour later, if it will help.

W1ngz · May 31, 2020

I wonder if those aren't zoanthids, but palythoas, and since it's the ones that were touched, they may have been releasing palytoxin.

I'd be very careful in how that coral is handled. It's just a guess, but if it's right, palytoxin can be dangerous in the wrong conditions.

ChgoGoodGirl · May 31, 2020

Sorry. It wasnt the ones it the post above. It was these.

ChgoGoodGirl · May 31, 2020

I was thinking the same about the polytoxins but i couldnt find anything about it looking like smoke. Also everything else in the tank seems not to be bothered at all by it.

W1ngz · May 31, 2020

I guess it's also possible they had just recently eaten something, and when disturbed they retract by expelling water. What you saw may have just been some dissolved food that was in the mouth when the water was expelled.

jeffrey750750 · May 31, 2020

When I was reaquascaping I had some palys out of water and about six of shot out like water cannons. They squirted out about 6 inches, it was weird seeing it

ChgoGoodGirl · May 31, 2020

Hmmmm. I didn't think of that. That's a good theory.

ChgoGoodGirl · May 31, 2020

jeffrey750750 said:
When I was reaquascaping I had some palys out of water and about six of shot out like water cannons. They squirted out about 6 inches, it was weird seeing it

Oooof I bet that was weird! Lol