Sick leather?

[M-pire]

Two days ago I posted the picture of what looked like my leather splitting. It was in perfect health then. Yesterday I noticed it never let out its polyps and had a few white spots on it. Today it is covered with the spots. Any ideas on what is wrong? What I can do?

Thanks

[liquafaction]

probably shedding. Mine shed about once a week. The first time I seen mine shed,is when I moved them out of nice water flow, and they stayed in that "shedding look" for about 2 weeks, untill I moved them back in good water flow. I almost got rid of them, thinking they were dead. Mine get glossy looking, and real hard when they shed. I found that keeping good water flow on them help them shed quickly, about 18 hrs.

[M-pire]

Thanks for the response, it was more comforting than what I was expecting! Did it have those hard looking white spots? It also looks pale compared to normal.

[liquafaction]

My spots were not on top of the leather so much as the sides, I am wondering if the spots are not where they "polyps" are supposed to be. If you can, try to get a slight direct current on them to see if they will shed faster.

[petcrazy213]

I've been reading posts and researching quite a bit on soft corals, especially leathers, and I was wondering about the shedding thing. I've read that it can be bad for the inhabitants of the tank when they shed ... true or not? Also, I am getting a skimmer in the near future (since I'm expanding into some soft corals eventually) and was wondering if the skimmer would take care of the "shed" of a leather or if it needs to be manually removed?

I know, stupid newbie questions but how else do we learn?

[M-pire]

Leather is still looking bad, white spots everywhere, no polyps extended, and some algea growing on it. It hasn't drooped over like ones I see in poor health, so could it be just a phase or something? I have it in a semi-direct flow. A small power head on cycling waves blows on it, but not hard and it is 1.5 feet away...could this be it? However it seemed to love it in the past.



Petcrazy213: I used to have a very large leather that would shed about once a week. It was just a thin slimey film and was quickly filtered away or eaten or something...it was just gone. So I never had any problems with it, but I had some hardy fish so I cant be sure that it is safe. Oh yeah, I didn't have a skimmer at that time either.

[mogurnda]

I don't think it's the current. If anything the current should help by blowing waste and mucus away from the coral. No idea otherwise.

[M-pire]

Its not looking good.

It has a thin covering of algea all over and is starting to list to one side, what ever is wrong with it I am starting to have my doubts about its recovery. :(

I was siphoning the tank yester day and noticed the leather had a slight covering of algea on the head...so I gently brushed it off. As soon as I did that it started shooting out some milky substance, could this be a toxin? I siphoned it out to be sure.