Sun Coral Closed for Days

Shy519 · Mar 7, 2019

I think it's finally time that I complain about this colony as my concern for its health has peaked. I ordered a sun coral and received it almost a week ago. It looks very healthy with the oinks and yellows but it hasn't opened for the entire time I've had it which has been about 5 days. I was being patient with it and was hoping it just needed to settle and hoped it would open soon. I read the "Care of Large Polyp Non-Photosynthetic Corals and I currently have the coral placed in a small cup with some Polyp Lab Polyp Booster to hopefully open up those heads. I have pictures below of the coral before i placed it into the cup. I feel that it looks relatively healthy color-wise. Is there something more I can do? Will it pull through?

Hillbillyreefer · Mar 7, 2019

Not time to panic yet. Wait until just before lights out to put it in the cup with the feed. Sometimes a broadcast of feed about an hour before lights out will get them to start opening, then placing them in the cup gets them to completely open and begin feeding.

Good luck!

Hillbillyreefer · Mar 15, 2019

Have they eaten yet?

A colony of black suns I have finally showed some extension this evening, they’ve been in the tank 25 days. They are showing signs of tissue loss/recession, which hopefully will rapidly reverse now that they the stubborn @#%&$ have begun to feed!

Scotty Buttons · Mar 15, 2019

Looks like you have it out in the open on top of a rock? There usually found in deeper waters, I think they do best in shaded areas, like underneath a overhang. Best of luck with it, they are really pretty corals.

Shy519 · Mar 15, 2019

I got them to extend some polyps with the help of polyp booster. I stick a combination of mysis and rod's food in there so they are eating but they haven't extended completely. I had done a water change and rescaped so there is a shady overhang that they are under now and are on the sand bed. They still have yet to extend completely but now I see that they extend their tendrils occasionally. I try to feed whenever I see them to maybe encourage them to open more and more often.