Sun Coral

I have a sun coral that was doing great until I went on vacation. My husband was home taking care of it all (see post about nitrates). He was spot feeding it but now one of the heads is black. He said he still saw the yellow "fingers" come out of it. I have been home only a couple hours and haven't seen them come out. The rest of the heads seem very happy and ok! Is that head dead and do I need to worry about the rest of the heads?

 

Anyone??

 

ive been wanting to keep this species for quite some time, any chance you could get a pic? i wouldnt worry too much about it unless you see parts receeding...

 

christy give me a call and I'll come check it out when you have time.

 

Each polyp is a separate coral. They don't share nutrients....that's why each polyp has to be target fed. By the same token, if one polyp dies that is not going to have an affect on any other polyps unless it's from a bacterial infection or nudibranch that can move from polyp to polyp.

BTW......this is a very rare nudibranch but I was pleased as punch that Bill published it. I kept these guys as pets for a few months but eventually it was cutting into the profits too much. The Sea Slug Forum - Phestilla melanobrachia

 

Interesting. Is there anything alive in the world that DOESN'T have a parasite associated with it?

 

No I don't see any tenticles coming from the one head but everyone else is still happy. Here are pics of my sun coral and the black head...

 

Well I tried to crop and save but it would put the cropped pic on here so it looks a little closer but you get the idea

 

ooo wow thats beautiful! very nice coloration

how long have you had it?