Hammer - tissue recession? skeleton showing

[Elise_]

Hey everyone,

I am having issues with a hammer that has been in the tank around a week and a half. After acclimating for a day it seemed very happy.
This is a video from 2-3 days after it settled in. Maybe not quite enough flow but still seemed happy.



Now this morning I noticed the polyps on one of the heads were small and retracted.
I did a water change tonight around 20% given it didn't look better and also added some more flow back in with a wave maker, I was worried there was not enough surface agitation on the tank.
Now taking a close look at looks like the skeleton is showing? The other head seems to have tissue around it that looks healthy.
I am not sure if it was like this when I got it as it's essentially been nice and extended since I put it in the tank.
Here are some pics from now.

You can see in this photo that the right side of it seems to have normal tissue around the skeleton.


Any suggestions are much appreciated, thanks guys!

 

[armreefer]

I would do a KFC (kungfucoral) dip. I see it does wonders.

The KFC Dip - A game changer in keeping healthy Euphyllia

Version: 1.1 (Updated 8/20/22) Please check this link for the latest version as the version included in the med kit but be outdated: https://kungfucorals.com/blogs/news/the-kfc-dip-a-game-changer-in-keeping-healthy-euphyllia PRE-WASH and POST WASH:!! Make sure to pre-wash corals before going...

kungfucorals.com

 

[lucyretz]

list of parameters?

 

[doubleshot00]

Every hammer ive put in my tank has done this.

 

[TokenReefer]

Maybe it doesn't like the coral it's right next to?

 

[lucyretz]

Every hammer ive put in my tank has done this.

there are multitudes of reasons why euphyllia deteriorate this way. usually labeled as easy to care for, they in most cases are not and seem to decline weeks or months after being put in a tank, most commonly because of damage to the polyps causing bacterial infections.

other common reasons are unstable parameters, nutrients too high or too low, par and/or flow being off. being in the sand can cause abrasions to those delicate polyps causing infection as well.

This is why we ask for so much info when answering euphyllia questions

 

[Elise_]

list of parameters?

Last test when putting the corals in was.

ALK: 133
pH: 8.0
Phos: 0.0
Ca: 387
Mg: 1175
Ammonia: 0.1
Nitrite: 0.0
Nitrate: 7

I have a new test kit coming Monday in the mail so I don't have to test at the LFS which is not super local and at least 45 minutes away.

 

[Elise_]

Looking at this it might be that nutrients are actually a bit too low. I have been trying to feed less and increased water changes to battle some algae issues but might have gone too far.

 

[3sgterror]

Last test when putting the corals in was.

ALK: 133
pH: 8.0
Phos: 0.0
Ca: 387
Mg: 1175
Ammonia: 0.1
Nitrite: 0.0
Nitrate: 7

I have a new test kit coming Monday in the mail so I don't have to test at the LFS which is not super local and at least 45 minutes away.

Is that ALK number real? Target should be in the 8-11 range.

Phosphate is 0, that might also be an issue. what test are you using for phosphate?

How long has the tank been up and running?

 

[Elise_]

Is that ALK number real? Target should be in the 8-11 range.

Phosphate is 0, that might also be an issue. what test are you using for phosphate?

How long has the tank been up and running?

It was on an aqua spin at the LFS, I think the ALK was ppm so it would equate to 7.435 dKH.

The tank has been running for a year and a half now. I had a big tank crash around 6 months ago and moved to a new house around 3 months ago but it was never really taken down the move was just down the road and the tank was completely set back up within an hour.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Like most other coral species, Euphyllia requires Stable tank conditions, and is intolerant to major swings in water quality, and is sensitive to almost any level of copper in the water. Since they are a large polyp stony coral, calcium and alkalinity are two very important water parameters that will affect the growth of your coral. This coral will start to die off if the calcium levels are too low. A calcium level of about 400 ppm is just right.
This coral species isn’t terribly picky when it comes to the proper placement in your tank. The trick would really be just to avoid the extremes. Avoid extremely bright locations or areas of very high current, and avoid areas that are too dark or with currents that are too low. Fast currents risk damaging the soft, fleshy polyps (and getting an infection). Bright lights will cause bleaching. Insufficient lighting will cause the poor coral to wither away and starve to death.
Hammer corals only require a moderate amount of light for photosynthesis and can grow well in the intermediate regions of your tank. Just about any reef LED lighting should be sufficient for most tanks. Reduce white light intensity and get it off the sand bed which sand can irritate it.
The polyps should sway in the current, but not sustain so much pressure they are constantly bent over their skeleton. Too much flow will tear the polyps (worst case) and cause the polyps do not extend in the first place (best case). So, don’t give them too much flow.

 

[Alexopora]

I notice this happens more for me when the coral arrives as a shipment (online) rather than going to the lfs and buying it physically. My guess its that it is stressed to the point of no return, I wouldnt crack my head trying to figure it out when my pre-existing hammers are doing fine. General rule of thumb for me is if they make it past two weeks, they’ll be fine.

 

[lucyretz]

Last test when putting the corals in was.

ALK: 133
pH: 8.0
Phos: 0.0
Ca: 387
Mg: 1175
Ammonia: 0.1
Nitrite: 0.0
Nitrate: 7

I have a new test kit coming Monday in the mail so I don't have to test at the LFS which is not super local and at least 45 minutes away.

yep parameters are the reason for decline.
ph - great
phos- get it off zero. 0.03-0.06. hanna checker is the best tester for this imo
cal- way too low. target 450
mag- deadly low. mag is vital to euphyllia, i keep mine around 1400 but some go as far as 1500
ammonia- how new is this tank? should be zero
nitrate is ok. could be around 15-20.

 

[Pkunk35]

First things I personally would do is:
dose 100ppm of magnesium daily until 1500,
Dose phosphate until reading (sometimes takes some days or weeks, depends), watch your nitrate as you do this so that it doesn’t bottom out
I actually lower flow over euphyllia when they show tissue recession/pulling away from skeleton.
Personally I would not dip this coral unless I saw bjd.

wall hammers can be challenging when freshly imported but they can come back, good luck!

 

[Elise_]

yep parameters are the reason for decline.
ph - great
phos- get it off zero. 0.03-0.06. hanna checker is the best tester for this imo
cal- way too low. target 450
mag- deadly low. mag is vital to euphyllia, i keep mine around 1400 but some go as far as 1500
ammonia- how new is this tank? should be zero
nitrate is ok. could be around 15-20.

Ok thanks,
looks like I will be getting some new checkers.
I do have Magnesium to dose so will do that and a Salifert checker I can use to monitor that. Guessing the salt water I am using to fill is too low in both of these.
I don't have a way to dose Phos or Calcium yet so will have to figure that out.

The tank is a year and a half now. The LFS said the aqua spin can read that level of Ammonia when it was really 0 and not to worry about it.

 

[lucyretz]

Ok thanks,
looks like I will be getting some new checkers.
I do have Magnesium to dose so will do that and a Salifert checker I can use to monitor that. Guessing the salt water I am using to fill is too low in both of these.
I don't have a way to dose Phos or Calcium yet so will have to figure that out.

The tank is a year and a half now. The LFS said the aqua spin can read that level of Ammonia when it was really 0 and not to worry about it.

depending on how stocked the tank is you will likely have to dose those vital elements instead of relying on waterchanges to replenish them and keep them stable.

 

[Elise_]

I only just put my first corals back into it and there has been 3 x rock flower anemones in the tank for a year now.
There is a single mushroom, acan, blasto and the two hammers.
I do want to get this fixed asap though as I have more coming next week.

It is a nano tank though so I am going to have to be careful at how I dose to get things right again.
Eek! Lets hope I can save some of these corals.

 

[lucyretz]

I only just put my first corals back into it and there has been 3 x rock flower anemones in the tank for a year now.
There is a single mushroom, acan, blasto and the two hammers.
I do want to get this fixed asap though as I have more coming next week.

It is a nano tank though so I am going to have to be careful at how I dose to get things right again.
Eek! Lets hope I can save some of these corals.

thats a little scary that you have more coming with so many values out of range. i would probably try to put getting anything else off until you get to be in range. you dont want to spike everything

 

[Elise_]

thats a little scary that you have more coming with so many values out of range. i would probably try to put getting anything else off until you get to be in range. you dont want to spike everything

I guess I was led a little astray as I trusted my LFS who said the levels were fine and the tank was clean... eek