Feeding Brain Coral

This is my open brain coral: https://www.liveaquaria.com/diversden/ItemDisplay.cfm?c=2733 8&ddid=85042

I understand to keep it healthy, and help it grow, it is beneficial to feed it every now and then at night. Well, a few nights in a row I've tried to feed it. I squirted mysis onto the tentacles. Nothing happened.

Should I be worried? Or does it just not want to eat?

Thanks!!

 

Alright, so you saw the tentacles, that's a good step forward from before lol.

Did it retract the tentacles when you squirted? I know if you squirt too hard, they'll retract them, as they think there's a predator there. When I feed mine, it's more of a "push out one mysis at a time" from the baster type of deal than a true "squirt".

 

corals need a particular concentration of food in the water to trigger a feed response. The challenge is to get the feed response while not polluting tank.
In the case of brain corals I personally don't believe they need target feeding.
I would simply dose phytoplankton and zooplankton in a controlled amount to feed corals but not cause algae

J

 

+1

the food kinda has to gently "fall" onto the coral.

anf if your are seeing feeders you are on the right track.

 

Open brain corals (Trachyphyllia) absolutely require target feeding. They're one of the corals with the lowest amount of their nutrient needs met by photosynthesis. Something like 20% comes from zooxanthellae.

 

id have to disagree, i did a lot of reasearch before getting my open brain and like 90% of what i read said they needed weekely feedings of meaty food

 

Yeah, pretty much it's the amount of food that's disputed, not whether they need to be fed. Some say once a week, others day 4 times a week...I'd say you're safe with it surviving anywhere in that range, and go with the higher end if you want it to grow decently fast.

Not feeding it, however, will lead to it dying from starvation. They're nearly a non-photosynthetic coral. They don't have the raw surface area that the largely photosynthetic corals do, and I wouldn't expect them to catch even 1/8th of the light of a Euphyllid of comparable diameter.

 

So I did a little googling myself only to find that 100% of the results recommend feeding of chunky meaty foods like fish flesh, crustaceans, shellfish between once a week to 2 times a month

I had a brain for over 7 years that I never fed. I will start feeding tonight

 

hahaha, i bet its hungry ;D.

 

watch out - it might take your hand off !!!