coral question

[tangirl]

I went on vacation for a couple weeks and my brother took care of my tank. Whne I came back, some of the corals seemed slightly overly inflated. Does that mean they are looking for food? Does it mean that he over fed the fish and there are extra nutrients in the water? Does it mean something else altogether?

Thanks

[tdwyatt]

Originally posted by tangirl
I went on vacation ...Whne I came back, some of the corals seemed slightly overly inflated...

Actually, it doesn't necessarily mean a thing, although it generally means that they are doing well. Inflation of polyps, especially in what have been characterized as "LPS" corals, can be due to changes in time of day, light conditions, feeding response, changes in salinity, current (water flow) changes, even the presence of particulate matter in the water column, not to mention the possibility of a mass spawining coming (many other reasons as well). This most likely is a good sign if your water parameters haven't changed and there are no other obvious parameters that have been skewed. Most likely in this case, it is a response to the possibility that there haven't been any hands in the tank for a while... (Opinion only on the last part )

[tangirl]

Not sure about the "hands in the tank" theory. I generally don't play with the tank too much. (Hands in or out) - For some reason this paragraph sounds really snotty to me - it's not meant to be at all - I'm just following up.

The most obviously inflated corals are my plate coral and the elegance. I've had the plate since the start (a year ago) and the elegance 8 months or so.

The plate coral is bigger and fluffier than normal and the elegance has its tentacles extended for the first time since I've had it. (I have never been able to get the elegance to eat, btw)

[tdwyatt]

Originally posted by tangirl
...The plate coral is bigger and fluffier than normal and the elegance has its tentacles extended for the first time since I've had it. (I have never been able to get the elegance to eat, btw)

An excellent sign, just the fact that the elegance is 8 months old and expanding is a fantastic prognosticator for its survival in the tank. Must be getting something from somewhere, so you're right on target. ...and don't worry about the way the paragraph came across, it is never a problem.

Just curious, do you feed/chum the tank, and do you target feed the corals? Do you have a specific regimen?

[FishDaddy]

Kendall,
That the tank is doing well is a welcome "good" vacation story! As Tom said, there's no way to really tell. You might debrief your brother on exactly how he tended the tank and you might get a clue. Overfeeding is probably the most tempting thing to do for new reefers or new tank tenders and a likely cause, expecially with the Elegance showing it's first expansion.
I'm just glad everything went well; every out of town trip is suspenseful for a reefer.
Dick

[tangirl]

Well this is all good to hear - everything seems fine in the tank, but what do I know?

Originally posted by FishDaddy
I'm just glad everything went well; every out of town trip is suspenseful for a reefer.
Dick

You should have seen the look on the poor kid's face when I was trying to explain where this hose goes and that hose goes and what buttons to hit if this came loose and what plugs to pull if that came loose!

Thanks folks!

[Jimbo]

I've hear other stories of tanks doing really well after a person came back from vacation. Something I noticed in my own tank is that when the akalinity fell some the corals expanded further. Also stable water parameters even if they are a little off allows the corals to adapt to the condition. Every time I dripped kalk for instance I had trouble, but if I did not do this and added calcium cloride instead they seemed alot happier even at a lower alkalinity. Personally I've had nothing but trouble trying to keep corals at elevated levels of calcium that everyone recommends. Probally not due the levels themselves but to the up and down that occurs and changes in buffering. Did you do some test on your tank after you got back? Your water parameters would be a good sign where to keep things, also I would like to know what they are.

Just my 2cents. Just because it's mainstream does not make it right! Things change everyday about our understanding of keep a reef.

Have a great day!