finger leather help

mrwhipels · 07-14-2005, 11:52 AM

I picked up a finger leather from my lfs two weeks ago. ever since I got it in my tank the thing has beenfalling over and only half of his polyps come. I have since done a water change and change the carbon (added more too) ally my water parms are fine and I have been wet skimming. I hope he is not a gonner. My toadstoll leathers polyps won't come out either. Those are the only 2 leathers I have in the tank. every thing else seems to be doing fine. Any one got any ideas?"

reef_noob · 07-14-2005, 05:31 PM

What lighting? What params have you checked? how is it mounted? Have you observed anything harrassing it? Is it near any aggressive corals?

Cosine · 07-14-2005, 09:32 PM

Was the toadstool opening fine before adding the finger?
it's possible that there's some chemical warfare going on between the two

mrwhipels · 07-14-2005, 10:55 PM

I have 192w pc (current usa satellite fixture) over a 30 gal tank. everthing is at zero am n02 n03 temp 78 sg 1.024. I have him mounted in the middle with good flow by him. The toadstool leather was added two weeks before the finger leather. Yes the poyps were coming out before I added the finger leather. Now they come out rarly. The finger leather polyps come out but he is all bent over. I added a frog spawn two days ago and he is 3 inchs away from the finger leather but these symptoms have been going on longer than the addition of the frog spawn. If there is chemical warfare going on what do I do to stop I changed the carbon 2 days ago with a bigger pouch?

Justin · 07-14-2005, 11:41 PM

The slumping over sounds like not enough flow on him. 3inches is awfully close, I understand that he was doing this before but best not to add to any allopathic stuff goin on. This is common for toadstools and leathers when 1, introduced to a new tank, 2, introduced to eachother. Good idea to keep the carbon as its becoming a mixed reef.

Also, did you acclimate him slowly to the tank?Not only for the difference in water but light as well, you pushin a good amount of light in a small tank, being the case, you may want to keep him down lower in the tank, may be too intense for him right now?Id put him at the bottom with some good current try that for a day and see if he perks up the next, hope that may help.(btw you have a higher ratio of lighting than I do although mine is bigger, all my leathers are at the bottom and are all happy and propagating there)

-Justin

reef_noob · 07-15-2005, 11:42 AM

my finger leather is a bit temperamental. Sometimes he deflates for several days, then expands fully for no apparent reason. I would make sure that you don't have anything aggressive nearby, run carbon, and observe him. You may want to make sure he is attached to a stable rock as my leather seems to prefer that.

mrwhipels · 07-15-2005, 04:52 PM

there is plenty of flow on him. his arms sway in the current. and for there being too much light he came from mh tank at the lfs and looked wonderfull the lfs almost dindn't want to get rid of him they wanted to put him in there display tank I will try him on the ground for now

Justin · 07-15-2005, 05:41 PM

It depends on where he was in there tank as well, but give it a shot for 2-3 days, if no difference, or worsens, may be other reason. Its really hard to assess reasons cuz like reef-noob says about his which is true for ALOT they can just be tempermental, and its hard to find out what it maybe cuz they can be slow to react either way, positive or negative, especially positive though. They must be hard convinced that everything is ok to come out.

-Justin

Superman · 07-15-2005, 07:15 PM

hmmm, why did the lfs not want to get rid of him? What color is he? I ask this because there are also a couple of possibilities that no one has mentioned

Could be an artificially colored leather and slowly losing the battle

Could be a type of dendronepthea and isn't getting the feedings that it needs

Just a couple of outside of the box questions just in case you may have gotten a leather that isn't the typical "finger" leather.

Justin · 07-15-2005, 11:40 PM

Good insight and point Superman, yes, a picture can be worth a thousand words..Do you have one?

-Justin

mrwhipels · 07-16-2005, 04:22 PM

the reason they didn't want to sell him is the owner really liked it and wanted to keep it so she moved it into her 200 gal show tank. Then her son who also works there didn't like it as much and moved it back to a sale tank. I think it is a legit finger leather. It looks like every other one I have seen. It has a slight green hue to it which looks reall cool under the actincs. More news I moved him to the bottom and I have rio 120 gph power head shooting towards the surface so I angled it down towards the finger and the toadstool and everthing is looking so much better the polyps on the toadstool are starting to come and no more bent over finger leather it looks like it did when I bought (which is very nice) I will post a pic later since I am short time. I am going out to get a maxi-jet 160 to replace the rio. I have a mj 160 on the other side and it's way more powerful then the rio so I think the chemicals coming from the leathers wer staying at the one side of the tank and not making it over to the pf where the carbon is. So If even out the flow on both sides I think that will work much better. Thanks for all your help.

Justin · 07-16-2005, 04:49 PM

Right on, glad to hear things may be looking up. Last night I was reading Eric Borneman's book on corals(awesome book recommend it to all). Toadstools and finger leathers(more so fingers Sinullaria Sp.) are one of the top ranking corals in toxicity to engage in these allopathic wars of territory.

-Justin

finger leather help

:)