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m007
03-20-2007, 6:10 PM
As you can see by my avitar my elegance coral was once a beautiful thing. Over the past 4 weeks it has been in a state of decline. The body of the coral seems OK but it no longer extends its tenticles and looks deflated. I first thought of water conditions, lighting, etc. but all were good. A little high on the SG but otherwise good. None of the other corals are showing any sign of distress. I purchased a sand sifting goby on the weekend (man does he ever sift sand!!!). After excavating his cave he has moved on and today excavated the sand around the base of my elegance. When I went to reposition the coral I noticed the base was in a state of degradation. (See photos):help: Any thoughts on the cause? I suspect that the break down of the base might be caused by some sort of chemical reation between the base and the sand it was buried in. It looks like the coral is being invaded from the bottom up which might be why it is in a state of distress? I have completely packed and sealed the affected area with underwater epoxy and fastened it directly to the glass. Thoughts, suggestions, comments......

http://www.westendtrains.com/aquarium/Skeleton1.JPG
http://www.westendtrains.com/aquarium/Skeleton2.JPG
http://www.westendtrains.com/aquarium/Skeleton3.JPG

as always thanks for the input!
Germanman
03-20-2007, 7:45 PM
could be from the sand covering it...ive seen that before. of it could be a infection as well. hard to tell get some flow over it and maybe add some strontium or a product to enhance coral growth. hows ur calcium?
m007
03-20-2007, 8:36 PM
CA 467 at the moment. Adding trace elements stronti/moly and iodine et al..
Germanman
03-20-2007, 8:54 PM
good luck man...thats a nice coral
WeeNe858
03-20-2007, 8:57 PM
elegance tend to do that.. people say they have beauties that last for about a year and start to go down hill.. try to move him out of the sand and does your supplements and give it a LITTLE flow around it
m007
03-20-2007, 9:02 PM
yeah I've read that before too. I have a gentle current around it and have cleared the sand away. Once the epoxy sets I will clear it to a thin layer.