Need Help/Advice On Removing A Large Softy

[Craig Lambert]

I have a Pipe Organ Coral that has been in my tank for two years now. It has grown from a small piece to the size of a softball and is encrusted into several large rocks. As it grew it attached itself to a wall of rock behind it, as well as at it's base. My tank is mostley SPS with a few LPS. This is the only Soft Coral in the tank.

How do I remove this with the least amount of damage? Will it release any toxins that will effect my sps? Help would be greatly appreciated.

[MarkusII]

Hello Craig,

from your writing I suppose you do not have a pipe organ coral (as they do not grow encrusting but as colonies) but something like Clavularia viridis or Briareum asbestinum...
Rather difficult to remove when it encrusted a lot.
If you could take the rocks out of your tank you can srutch it away.

Pipe oran coral (Tubipora musica) - if you touch the polyps and they hide there is a red sceleton left: tubipora musica sceleton

if you touch clavularia viridis the skin is almost flat and purple

and if you touch Briareum asbestinum its again flat and the skin is gray or skin coloured

regards

Markus

[Craig Lambert]

Originally posted by MarkusII
Hello Craig,

from your writing I suppose you do not have a pipe organ coral (as they do not grow encrusting but as colonies) but something like Clavularia viridis or Briareum asbestinum...
Rather difficult to remove when it encrusted a lot.
If you could take the rocks out of your tank you can srutch it away.

Pipe oran coral (Tubipora musica) - if you touch the polyps and they hide there is a red sceleton left: tubipora musica sceleton

if you touch clavularia viridis the skin is almost flat and purple

and if you touch Briareum asbestinum its again flat and the skin is gray or skin coloured

regards

Markus

Thanks Very Much Markus!,

It was sold to me as a Pipe organ coral (Tubipora musica). I purchased it from Live Aquaria's "Diver's Den" two years ago. (They are not known for mistaken identity). But, having read your post the coral is likely clavularia as the skin is purple when the polyps retract. It looks just like your linked picture, except for the color.

The challenge is that the coral is encrusted to two sepearate large rocks, and I will not be able to lift them out at the same time and avoid damaging the coral. I could get my hand around a good portion of the base and tear it away from the rocks (effectively fragging it in the tank). I could then remove the rocks one at a time and scrape off the remaining encrustment. Would this be ok? Would I risk releasing any toxins into the tank that could damage sps? Again, thanks for your helpful response. Any further guidance would be appreciated.

Craig

[MarkusII]

Hello Craig,

if it is C. viridis it cannot look like the picture linked with the red sceleton as C. viridis grows and spreads flat over your rocks and others.
For removal you can do as you wrote. Instead of tearing away a large piece - you can also - if you can access - cut between the two encrusted stones with a knife. Then take out the stones and scratch the coral off with a knife.

regards

Markus