grassi
06-03-2010, 03:15 PM
A few months ago one of my birdnest suffered of rapid tissue necrosis and suddenly died. Seems to be a pretty common issue.
I was not understanding why one colony died and the other was doing so well.
Same, tank, water, care...
I then decided that it was just life. Sometimes plants and animals just die because they have to.
But this wasn't the answer I was looking for. And the white skeleton of that nice yellow birdnest was still looking at me, like in the "Ghost whisperer".
It was sitting on my fragging table, looking at me and whispering "why I died?".
So I pick up the phone and sent a few emails, not considering that in the old continent is almost night. I got my answers, I think.
What we call commonly birdnest is a coral scientifically named Seriatopora Caliendrum or Seriatopora Hystrix, depending on the thickness of the branches.
The family is Pocilloporidae and the genus Seriatopora and they are known to live in upper reef slopes of indo pacific, even if we don't know much about this coral.
But there is something that marine biologists know well about this coral and about the Pocilloporidae: they suffer a lot for being exposed to coral of other species. Their tissue is so tiny that they are not able to regenerate quickly.
They can be damaged to death even from other corals that are as far as 5 feet away.
A few days before my birdnest died, I installed a brand new MP40, pumping just in the direction of my colony. They love high flow, but not if a few inches away there is another sps of another family. The other birdest colony was in the other side of the tank, and it is better separated from potential enemies.
I want to think that this was the reason, and I will try to assure that my birdnest will always have room around the branches.
I'm not saying that every Pocilloporidae will die if closer than a few feet to another sps, but just that most of the time we are keeping corals under conditions which are far away from their natural habitat.
The birdnest skeleton is now smiling at me, and waving his little hand, and fading away.
NOTE: I don't use drugs and beer time it is far away (laugh)
I was not understanding why one colony died and the other was doing so well.
Same, tank, water, care...
I then decided that it was just life. Sometimes plants and animals just die because they have to.
But this wasn't the answer I was looking for. And the white skeleton of that nice yellow birdnest was still looking at me, like in the "Ghost whisperer".
It was sitting on my fragging table, looking at me and whispering "why I died?".
So I pick up the phone and sent a few emails, not considering that in the old continent is almost night. I got my answers, I think.
What we call commonly birdnest is a coral scientifically named Seriatopora Caliendrum or Seriatopora Hystrix, depending on the thickness of the branches.
The family is Pocilloporidae and the genus Seriatopora and they are known to live in upper reef slopes of indo pacific, even if we don't know much about this coral.
But there is something that marine biologists know well about this coral and about the Pocilloporidae: they suffer a lot for being exposed to coral of other species. Their tissue is so tiny that they are not able to regenerate quickly.
They can be damaged to death even from other corals that are as far as 5 feet away.
A few days before my birdnest died, I installed a brand new MP40, pumping just in the direction of my colony. They love high flow, but not if a few inches away there is another sps of another family. The other birdest colony was in the other side of the tank, and it is better separated from potential enemies.
I want to think that this was the reason, and I will try to assure that my birdnest will always have room around the branches.
I'm not saying that every Pocilloporidae will die if closer than a few feet to another sps, but just that most of the time we are keeping corals under conditions which are far away from their natural habitat.
The birdnest skeleton is now smiling at me, and waving his little hand, and fading away.
NOTE: I don't use drugs and beer time it is far away (laugh)