Sand on brain coral

[ThatNewFishGuy]

I have a large maroon gold clown that loves to stir the sand bed up and not just by swimming close to the sand, she will literally rub her belly on the sand for 2-3 seconds. From what Ive read it seems like its just one of their normal behaviors. I thought it was kind of neat at first but now its becoming a hassel. I have a brain coral that gets sand thrown on it because of the clown.

My philosophy is to keep my hands out of my tank as much as possible so I hate having to pick up my brain coral and shake it off. Its not completely covered in sand or anything but there is some grains on it. Plus my tank is deep so it means getting my entire arm wet to reach down to the sand bed and shake him off.

Is it better for me to leave it alone or pick it up and shake it off? The last time I did this it receeded for a day but then popped up back to normal.

I was thinking maybe I could just blow the sand off with a air pump or turkey baster or something instead of having to pick him up everytime.

 

[SubRosa]

If by Brain you refer to a Trachyphyllia type their normal habitat is the sandbed. Corals are very capable of cleaning themselves off after a storm, particularly ones that start out half buried! Not a reason to put your hand in, that's for sure!

 

[ThatNewFishGuy]

^its funny you say that because my dad said it happened again last night. When I looked at the tank this morning though, there was no sand and it was completely out (no receeding). So happy about this. Very cool too

 

[greech]

Trachys and other fleshy LPS do not like sand on them for extended periods. While they can inflate and deflate to help remove the sand, if there is insufficient flow to do so, the sand can irritate them to the point that they will stay retracted and/or die. A few grains is no biggie but piles of sand should be removed. In the ocean, water movement is very random and settling of sand for extended periods isn't an issue. If you want to keep your hands out of the tank, try a turkey bater to gently blow off the sand.