Acan troubles!

[emerald525]

What is happening to my Acans? They were doing great puffed up and happy and lately they are shrunk down and a few of them are receding?:cry:

Everything else.. zoa, fish, chalices, sps, digis! even the acan echinatas look great.

Parameters have been stable

ph 8.18 in the am and 8.3 in the pm
salinity 1.023
DkH 9
ca 440 mg 1150 (dosed yesterday) zero nitrites, nitrates , phos, and ammonia

The only thing I can think of is the mystery wrasse we added a few weeks ago. I don't see it pecking at the acans but it's not like I watch my tank 24 hours a day!

Please help me!!!:cry:

 

[TopNotchCorals]

Salinity could definitely be raised to atleast 1.025

 

[soccerbag]

What lighting do you have them under? With zero NO3 and PO4 (if those are accurate readings), you are likely starving them. Do you spot feed them at all?

 

[emerald525]

I spot feed them every other day with a mixture of cyclpeeze, mysis, brine, oyster feast. They were doing great few weeks ago. Tentacles are still out still just the outsides are all shrunk down. I have 4 vho and 2 150W MH

 

[Mr E Wrasse]

i doubt it's the mystery wrasse, I had one (god rest his soul) and he never picked at any of my acans or acros or anything else.

 

[thewackyreefer]

I would be willing to bet if you took your mg up over 1300 they'd start to look better.

 

[emerald525]

Hmmm, I still wonder if something is picking at them as the magnesium hasn't changed much and I am slowly bumping up the salinity. I have moved a few of them to the frag tank. Again only new addition fish wise is the mystery wrasse.
The rest of the fish are reef safe:
algae blenny, 2 hippo tangs, flasher wrasse, green spotted mandarin, cleaner wrasse, and 2 black and white clownfish in 150 tank.

 

[Oiseau Reefer]

Pics? Agreed on the mag I run mine 1650-1700 once my mag was over 1500 my acans really puffed up

 

[Oiseau Reefer]

Also if there is anyone to blame here it would more than likely the blue hipo if they get a little bit hungry they have a sampling urge they just can't resist not their fault make sure they have nori through out the day and see if that helps a lot of the time though unfortunatly once a tang has sampled and lps they will return to it over and over through out a day if it doesn't have it's nori to fill it's belly !

 

[Alpha Aquaculture]

If they are receeding you should frag off the dying portion or you might lose the entire colony. I wouldn't wait to do this and I wouldn't chance any areas near the recession that look iffy, frag those off as well. I have had acans get diseases for no reason, it happens but you must frag the diseased portions off. Consider interceptor if you cannot find the culprit. I hope it gets better for you

+1 on raising mg

 

[emerald525]

Thanks for the help. I dipped the ones that were receding when I moved them. I didn't remove the dead areas. Oiseau may be on to something with the hippo tang. I saw the bigger one peck at the echinata and I did just run out of their favorite nori and have been using a different brand that they didn't like. I will go buy some more seaweed. I will keep you posted.

 

[tampasnooker]

I've had hippo tangs go bad and start to sample fleshy corals on several occasions. +1 on increasing salinity and Mag, but suspect the tang is the culpret. Keep him fat.

 

[inactive]

Interceptor has been my new LPS savior.

 

[Emoney]

+1 on the MAG!

 

[Gazog]

... Consider interceptor if you cannot find the culprit.

Interceptor has been my new LPS savior.

I would like to know why you would recommend using something that #1 if used incorrectly can and will kill all
crustacean's in your tank, and #2 is only use to kill red bugs which irritates SPS but do absolutely nothing to
bother LPS? I mean is this something new? and what benifits does it have?

I agree on raising both the Alk and Mag. Mine all seem to do better when I keep both a little higher that the norms.
Plus Feeding my Acans is a MUST, I feed mine every 3rd day.

 

[inactive]

I would like to know why you would recommend using something that #1 if used incorrectly can and will kill all
crustacean's in your tank, and #2 is only use to kill red bugs which irritates SPS but do absolutely nothing to
bother LPS? I mean is this something new? and what benifits does it have?

I agree on raising both the Alk and Mag. Mine all seem to do better when I keep both a little higher that the norms.
Plus Feeding my Acans is a MUST, I feed mine every 3rd day.

What do you base your research on? I'm speaking from 1st hand experience with stuff that I deal with on a regular basis.

 

[All Delight]

I don't know why it happens, but its happened to me in the past. I've dipped them in tmpcc. For me its been a hit or miss.

 

[emerald525]

So what confuses me (not hard to do) is if it was a parasite, wouldn't it affect other things besides the acans? I put 3 in the frag tank after dipping. I put seaweed up for the tangs. Kraylen why do you recommend interceptor?
will also try bumping up the mag.

Thanks for all the tips.

 

[Lowsingle]

Sorry to hear.....same thing happened to me (acans receding, but everything else was fine)......I lost many of my prized acans.....I tried interceptor and my mag was high (1450), but nothing seemed to work.....good luck, I just gave up on acans and no longer keep them.....

Darren

 

[tampasnooker]

Kraylen - do tell. Is the interceptor killing 'pods that could be irritating them? Or is it attacking a pathogen that hurts the LPS?