So I had a lot of beautiful zoa's and palys....and then a Moorish Idol showed up on my doorstep....vendor sent the wrong order. Honestly I didn't think he would live very long as they don't seem to thrive well from my research. He left all corals alone for the first 3 months and now he's eating my zoa gardens up like crazy and some palys as well. I'm so sad. He seems to be quite happy too. We've had him 6 months and he's fat and tripled in size. I feed frozen 2x a day. Pellets and always, always keep nori and algae sheets in the tank so I know he's getting plenty to eat. But now my tank is looking bare. I do have a Torch, a Hammer, Frog Spawn and a large Elegance and Finger leather and then just a splatter of zoa's and palys. What is something that will grow fast and fill up space that he won't be interested in eating?
Coral my Moorish Idol won't eat
- Thread starter TrishK
- Start date
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Wannabereefvet
Community Member
You should be okay with any kind of mushroom coral. I’ve never seen a fish eat mushrooms. Endless variety with them too. Might be okay with leather corals and other softies too.
I’ve had mine for a little over 4 yrs. It has eaten my corals, too many to name. What it doesn’t eat are Duncan’s, fox corals, mushrooms, gonis, bubbles, torches, hammers, frogspawn, blastos, dendros, plating sponge, palys, sympodium, & purple gorgonian unless it starts growing algae.
ReefHog
Well-Known Member
So far the only thing my 15 month MI has picked at is a small Duncan colony. Stressed it down to two heads which were always closed. I've had it in my coral QT for the last two months and its back open all the time with four heads.
AquaLifeStudio
Well-Known Member
Our Idol has been munching on our zoas and palys, nothing else. Makes me a little sad that I can't have those gardens any longer. Not getting rid of the fish.
Elliott ll
Active Member
I have found that each idol is different. You will have to play a game of whackamole to find out what corals will work. Euphyilla and Gonis seem to be very safe. Mine picks at SPS but not so much that I can't keep it. Zoas are gone in seconds. I would never introduce an Idol into an established reef system though... It's one of those fish that is better off on a new build going in first.
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