Goniopora - I know, I know, should not have bought it

[lickyricky]

So I have a Goniopora that is going on a year old and guess what?? It's still alive! I know right,
Well it's alive but not doing great. I have not had full polyp extension (and sometimes none at all) for the last 6 months but it seems like its still somewhat alive I guess. Here are my questions maybe someone with goniopora experience can help me out with. Before we start, let me just say that I have read HUNDREDS of forums and articles on this species (after I bought it unfortunately).

here goes;
So sometimes he looks kind of inflated, like a balloon. Other times he just looks like a weird rock with circles all over. Sometimes the polyps extend just a bit but the tentacles are very very short. Is it dying? It does not look bleached as it has all of it's green color still.

People say to feed it...but how can I if the polyps are not fully extended? I have tried and it just seems to make it puff up like a balloon.

The guys at my LFS said to move it to the sump with little flow and no light to "nurse it back"...how in the world will it come back with little/no light?? Was he just an idiot? I tried moving it to the back of my tank where the flow is very low but same light and it does not look any different really. Would anyone recommend moving it to the sump? I am willing to try anything to get it back because it is a beautiful specimen.

Any other tips on getting this guy back to what he use to be? People do say they don't last long in captivity but if you look hard enough there are plenty of people that have had success with it in captivity.

Tank Parameters
1 year old
AM - 0
Ni - 0
AK - 11.0
Ca - 400
Mg - 1350
Nitrates - 0 ppm
Phosphate - 0 ppm
PH - 7.9-8.1
Temp - 78-81
Salt - 34.5 ppm / 1.025 SG

 

[ZachR32]

Following along! I've had great success with aquaculture pieces not needing feeding and growing like crazy. Ive also had not so great success with mariculture that seems to just exist

 

[Lloyd Williams]

Following also

 

[Dburr1014]

Yup, I'm following a well.
I pickup a frag of pink goni to try. I here they like to be fed well. So far so good.... 2 weeks anyway.

 

[Oshengems]

I been playing with my Nitrates and I noticed better extension when my nitrates are up when it’s close to zero they barely come out but I’m not sure if it’s that exactly what’s causing this reaction with mine

 

[lickyricky]

I been playing with my Nitrates and I noticed better extension when my nitrates are up when it’s close to zero they barely come out but I’m not sure if it’s that exactly what’s causing this reaction with mine

I was thinking that could have something to do with it

 

[warhorseart]

I had one I thought died so I threw it in the back chamber with my rubble rock. Well, a year later I was breaking the tank down and guess what? The dime size dead frag was the size of a golf ball. I moved it to the display part and it did fabulous.

 

[tripdad]

I have luck with aquacultured but not wild. Yours sounds like a wild one. I keep nitrates over 8 and phosphates at .1 fwiw. You can try taking it out of the tank, putting it in a cup or bowl for a few minutes surrounded by food. That will keep it from polluting your tank but maybe coax the thing to feed. Good luck.

 

[Lloyd Williams]

I heard green is crazy hard comparatively

 

[Coralreefer1]

Goniopora and Alveopora do better under less than ideal water parameters! For some reason, many aquarists think there is an Urban Legend that optimum water parameters are a must when keeping these LPS!

 

[Nikita1981]

I saw big improvement after starting Red Sea Reef Energy A plus B. Only after 2 weeks in it extended more than it did in a whole year and it has been fluffy and flowing every day for the last couple of months. You could give it a go. I keep my nitrates no lower than 5.

 

[lickyricky]

I saw big improvement after starting Red Sea Reef Energy A plus B. Only after 2 weeks in it extended more than it did in a whole year and it has been fluffy and flowing every day for the last couple of months. You could give it a go. I keep my nitrates no lower than 5.

I dose A and B every other day already.

 

[lickyricky]

I saw big improvement after starting Red Sea Reef Energy A plus B. Only after 2 weeks in it extended more than it did in a whole year and it has been fluffy and flowing every day for the last couple of months. You could give it a go. I keep my nitrates no lower than 5.

How would I go about increasing nitrates? Turn skimmer off for a period of time? 12 hours a day?

 

[Kmsutows]

Many will say your nutrients are too low (lucky). May want to try gently dropping some reef rods on it a couple times a week and see if that does anything. I've also been told iodine dips periodically. I tried this and not sure if it helped my wild one. It's still struggling like you described but flesh has receded significantly. My phosphates are borderline too high for acros though so who knows

 

[lickyricky]

Many will say your nutrients are too low (lucky). May want to try gently dropping some reef rods on it a couple times a week and see if that does anything. I've also been told iodine dips periodically. I tried this and not sure if it helped my wild one. It's still struggling like you described but flesh has receded significantly. My phosphates are borderline too high for acros though so who knows

I do target feed reefroids and it just puffs up. I read oyster eggs may work?

 

[lickyricky]

I had one I thought died so I threw it in the back chamber with my rubble rock. Well, a year later I was breaking the tank down and guess what? The dime size dead frag was the size of a golf ball. I moved it to the display part and it did fabulous.

Hmmmm. So maybe try the sump for a few days??

 

[ReefdUp]

I'm far from being a goniopora/alveopora expert, but I've had a ton of success... including bringing some dying colonies back to full health.

The best luck I've had is with them in high light (acclimated) and high flow (indirect). My tanks are low nutrient naturally, but I do spot feed about 3x per week with a homemade blend. (All in addition to stable and good water parameters.)

It goes against a lot of the common perceptions on those corals, but I've grown so many and had them for years by doing this.

I have a LFS full of gonioporas/alveoporas that they propagate and sell. They told me just last week they found the most success doing the same things.

Nothing scientific to back it up. But, maybe it's another idea for you to consider.

 

[40B Knasty]

Had this for a year. Never did anything special for it. Mid tank, right spectrums of light, and a bounce from the wave makers for better oxygen exchange..

 

[shred5]

Depends on the goni. Some are not too bad and some are near impossible to impossible to keep. Non are for beginners.

Goniopora and Gorgonia are my favorite corals.

Most goniopora defiantly are doable now a days, it just that some require more work than others.


Success is measured in years not months.
Gonis have been known to live a year to a year and half and die for no reason. They even grow sometimes or drop babies and then go into a slow decline and never recover. That is why they were thought to be hard, people could just not get them over the 1 to 1.5 year hump.
The main goni that was sold back then that made people think they are impossible is goniopora stokesi. It is still hard to keep and the reason gonis have a bad reputation. A few have had some success with stokesi but no one knows why.

We now import many different species like goniopora stutchburyi which can be kept pretty successfully.

Some gonis just starve to death slowly and need lots of feedings to keep them alive just like nps corals. Probably why some only last a year to a year and a half. Takes that long to slowly starve to death with partial requirements being met. I believe some feed on bacteria too.

Others like the ORA red gonis really do well with out direct feeding but seem to still do better with them.

I have found short polyp, encrusting type and reds to be the easier varieties.

I have kept close to 50 different varieties and color variations. I still keep some but I try to keep the easier ones now because I just do not have the time to put in that some of them require.

Goniopora are probably one of the most touchy corals I know of. Some actually close up just by putting a finger in the water.

The can close up with wrong lighting or flow. It can be tricky to find the right conditions.

Some come from higher nutrient places like bays and others are on the reef in low nutrients.

Trying to figure out what they eat for those that do is the hard part. Some like something large like cyclopeeze some like oyster eggs or prawn eggs down to the smallest golden pearls to even bacteria. I found reef-roids to get a good response from most. I have tried gonipower and it is ok too what is funny is my gorgonia really liked gonipower. Turning the flow down is helpful to and dusting them with it, target feed them.

Basically they all are different and that is what makes some hard. Do not expect one goniopora to be like the other. Remember there is always the exception.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I have had the best luck with keeping goni and alveopora when I had them in 80-90 Par lighting, moderate waterflow with the Alk closer to 8.5, Nitrates at 5 and phosphates between .01 and .003.