Reef Discussion
I had the helio for four weeks in QT with fish and moved across on Saturday...all looked great until this afternoon.
The QT only had T5 tubes the DT has 150w MH and 2 T5's so I had helio lower down in tank, maybe not low enough...was great until this afternoon, but as I said temp got to 27 degrees
Anyway I dropped down even further in the tank...stated popping out a bit
What is "surplus zooxanthellae"?
The QT only had T5 tubes the DT has 150w MH and 2 T5's so I had helio lower down in tank, maybe not low enough...was great until this afternoon, but as I said temp got to 27 degrees
Anyway I dropped down even further in the tank...stated popping out a bit
What is "surplus zooxanthellae"?
Zooxanthellae live symbiotically within the coral polyp tissues and assist the coral in nutrition production through its photosynthetic activities. These activities provide the coral with fixed carbon compounds for energy, calcification etc. and oxygen The host coral in return provides the zooxanthellae with a protected environment to live within, and a steady supply of carbon dioxide for its photosynthetic activities.
Now, in a low light environment the zooxanthellae may not produce sufficient 'food' to meets the corals needs so it increases the supply of carbon dioxide resulting in an increase in the number of zooxanthellae, and thus an increase in the amount of 'food' to the coral. However, when the coral is exposed to a higher level of light the reverse can happen. The level of oxygen can reach levels dangerous to the coral and, to prevent damage to itself, it is able to ingest or eject zooxanthellae. Zooxanthellae are often golden or brown which is what you have seen ejected from the mouth of the coral.
High temperatures, (as little as 1 to 2 degrees celcius) can also result in a similar ejection of zooxanthellae.
These events are known as coral bleaching. If the event lasts a short time the remaining zooxanthellae are likely to multiply and return to normal levels, or the coral will injest new zooxanthellae from the water, with minimal long term effects. However, should the event be sustained and the corals loses all its zooxanthellae then it will eventually die.
Sven, in your situation the helio may have been somewhat stressed from the increase in light but then became further stressed from the temperature increase. Assuming that everything has now been stabilised I would expect the coral to recover.
I also don't know if it got stung by the nem ;), but I suspect the major problem was the temperature.
Hope this helps.
Now, in a low light environment the zooxanthellae may not produce sufficient 'food' to meets the corals needs so it increases the supply of carbon dioxide resulting in an increase in the number of zooxanthellae, and thus an increase in the amount of 'food' to the coral. However, when the coral is exposed to a higher level of light the reverse can happen. The level of oxygen can reach levels dangerous to the coral and, to prevent damage to itself, it is able to ingest or eject zooxanthellae. Zooxanthellae are often golden or brown which is what you have seen ejected from the mouth of the coral.
High temperatures, (as little as 1 to 2 degrees celcius) can also result in a similar ejection of zooxanthellae.
These events are known as coral bleaching. If the event lasts a short time the remaining zooxanthellae are likely to multiply and return to normal levels, or the coral will injest new zooxanthellae from the water, with minimal long term effects. However, should the event be sustained and the corals loses all its zooxanthellae then it will eventually die.
Sven, in your situation the helio may have been somewhat stressed from the increase in light but then became further stressed from the temperature increase. Assuming that everything has now been stabilised I would expect the coral to recover.
I also don't know if it got stung by the nem ;), but I suspect the major problem was the temperature.
Hope this helps.
That's fantastic thank you...Shane is it? The helio is looking a lot better today....not fully expanded like it used to but much better and no expulsions.
It actually has more colour than ever which is great.
Have my chiller sorted out and have put it low in the tank away from other corals and the BTA
Water is in good balance, magnesium is a bit high but that should naturally come down, everything else is just right.
I looked in last night and the clowns were in the BTA so deeply I couldn't see them at first, looked like they were wrapped in a doona!!
It actually has more colour than ever which is great.
Have my chiller sorted out and have put it low in the tank away from other corals and the BTA
Water is in good balance, magnesium is a bit high but that should naturally come down, everything else is just right.
I looked in last night and the clowns were in the BTA so deeply I couldn't see them at first, looked like they were wrapped in a doona!!
This is only an educated guess, but I think that could be expected. When a coral expels zooxanthellae it allows us to see more of the underlying tissue/skeleton. That is why bleached corals look white - and helio's look 'different'. As the zooxanthellae returns you might expect it to darken up a bit.
Disclaimer - there has been no research undertaken in writing this post and it might all just be crap :eek:
Disclaimer - there has been no research undertaken in writing this post and it might all just be crap :eek:
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