Blue Acropora Humilis concern...

[parkavenuereef]

Got my blue acro yesterday quite a large peice. looked great at the LFS, looked great yesterday in my tank, today It seems to have browned a but in between the polups. its still very vibrant blue on the polups but seems to have browned a bit.. I was told to mount it very high in the tank and it has water flow, just not strong direct current. is this normal or is it stressing out? Its under 400W 14K... I am concerned i am missing something in my water for its proper survival.. levels of b-ionic are around normal/higher end. any help would be great.. Gary I think your expertice is needed on this one... http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/98214IMG_3265.JPG

[jhammond]

Acropora will typically brown a bit when stressed. Which can be induced primarily by shipping, and aclimating to your water/lighting/flow. Is your lighting more dim than at your LFS?? In my experience blue acros stay more blue under whiter light. How long did the LFS have the coral before you bought it?? Acros usually have the best colors upon arrival. You should check your phoshates as well, acros will brown out with higher nutrient levels. Acros morphing into other colors is quite common. I would just try to leave it alone and don't make any drastic changes to cause more stress.

[parkavenuereef]

the lfs store had it about 6 hours after shipping before me taking it.. so its been moved.. my lighting is 800w of 14k halides.. is about 4 inches from surface of water..

[nwrogers]

Did you start the coral out at the bottom of the tank and move it up slowly over the course of a couple days? If not it is most likely “photoshock�. With lights that bright you may have to be more careful acclimating corals. Let us know how it turns out. I will be firing up my new 400 watt bulbs for the first time tomorrow. Good luck!

[Gary Majchrzak]

I agree strongly- introduce new Acropora by placing them at the bottom of aquarium first. Bring them up slowly.
Acros in the humilis/gemmifera complex are among the most difficult corals to keep alive, let alone keep "colored up".
Wild caught corals are more difficult to keep alive than captive raised frags.
If the coral survives acclimation, you will want to position it near the surface and in direct (preferably alternating) water flow. (You'd need to glue that heavy Acro colony down, for example.)
If you fail to keep this coral alive, you're not alone.
I see lots of them being sold, but the few that I've seen alive in aquariums are almost always new purchases- in other words, I don't see many folks keeping them alive for long.
Nice coral.

[parkavenuereef]

Are there any supplements that i should use besides bionic?

[Gary Majchrzak]

It depends. Acros like it really "clean". The cleanest reef aquarium is still "dirtier" than the environment these corals are collected from.
Feedings and saltmix along with B-ionic additions are probably providing more than enough "trace" elements to a typical reef aquarium than is necessary for Acroporiids. Never dose what you don't test for.

[parkavenuereef]

gary what do you use for supplements in your tank??

[Gary Majchrzak]

I don't add any "supplements" to my aquarium per se.
Trace elements are replenished via weekly water changes and I replace calcium and alkalinity via a Ca reactor and kalkwasser (makeup water). I regularly (yet sparingly) feed my fishes and anemones quality foods. (Avoid those cheapo flake food, folks!) I rarely target feed specific corals- they usually capture incidental foods suspended in the water column.
I'm sure that one big smelt (a type of feeder fish) fed to my blue carpet anemone equals the total weight of foods fed to some folks reef aquarium in one whole year- that's why I have the best protein skimmer I can afford running in the basement.

[jimmer]

those corals are tough!i has one for about 6 months-never really colored up then i lost it.i agree about putting on bottem or low in tank.lot of changes in a 24 hour period-shipped in darkness then under store tanks lights -right into your tank.many variables.pretty coral tho.
gary what are some better flake foods?

[Gary Majchrzak]

I like the 'Ocean Nutrition' line of flake foods. Pricey, but worth every penny.

[parkavenuereef]

well today i put it in direct flow of a wavemaker power head, seems to be in better color.. I raised my calcium and alk . a bit to. hopefully it will get back to normal but as of now it still looks incredible! Thanks fpr all your input guys! I appreciate it!