Open Brain Coral Skelton

[bjoiner]

I purchased an open brain coral today. When I got it home I noticed that there is a piece of it's skeleton showing. I'm pretty sure it was like this at the store but didn't notice it untill I got it home. Is there a chance it will survive, or is it pretty much a goner?

 

[Meloco14]

If it is small enough that you didnt notice it in the store it probably isn't a big deal. Keep an eye on it though, and if the dead area starts to spread try to frag it off. Otherwise keep the coral in good conditions and it should survive and start to grow. I have had a couple dying LPS corals come back to be perfectly healthy in my tanks. Spot feeding it wouldn't hurt either. Good luck.

 

[bjoiner]

It seems to be eating. I added some plankton and the holes opened up over the course of a few hours, then closed up again later that evening. The damage doesn't seem to be spreading at this point. I will keep a close eye on it.

If it is small enough that you didnt notice it in the store it probably isn't a big deal. Keep an eye on it though, and if the dead area starts to spread try to frag it off. Otherwise keep the coral in good conditions and it should survive and start to grow. I have had a couple dying LPS corals come back to be perfectly healthy in my tanks. Spot feeding it wouldn't hurt either. Good luck.

If I frag it, would that make me an open brain surgeon?

 

[SnowManSnow]

if the part of the skeleton that is showing is white that means that it is "new death". If it is grey or covered in coraline it is old. Keep an eye on it and see if the tissue receeds any more.

I know you want to feed it... but be careful not to overfeed your system.

B

 

[bjoiner]

What do you recommend in terms of a feeding schedule. This is my first time with Corals.

 

[jenniferjeter]

Having the same trouble with mine. At night it extends well but then during the day it is withdrawing so much that the skeleton is tearing the tissue. running 32 watt days and 32 watt acentics on a 24 gallon nano. I'm hoping moving him to a more shaded area and cutting back the day hrs will give him time to regenerate the tissue. Didn't think you could frag an open brain?

 

[bjoiner]

It's been 3 days so far and the skeleton line doens't seem to be getting any worse. I was a little afraid yesterday because each of the mouths were opened to about the size of a dime. Next time I looked, they were back to closed.

One question I had was; when I got the coral he was attached to a small piece of rock, the rock actually fit like a puzzle piece into my own live rock, so I didn't bother removing him, but just added the new rock to my own.

After doing a little more poking around, I came across a couple of websites that said open brain corals prefer soft substrate. Do I need to position him in the sand bed instead of on the rock? I'm getting conflicting advice and would like some clarification.

Also, the lady at the store said that the coral was about to split. I haven't found any information on brain coral reproduction. Do brain corals actually divide?