Damaged hammer coral

guitarfish · 02/27/2006, 07:03 PM

I have a new hammer coral I got tonight, resulting from a trade at the LFS. One of the three branches appears to have some damage. I can see some of the white calcerous skeleton that would ordinarily be hidden by the polyps.

Not the greatest picture. Should I leave it be and see how it does? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Paintbug · 02/27/2006, 07:10 PM

see the little thing sticking out from the coral on the right? i would remove that ASAP. it could just be getting used to your tank. mine did the same thing for a couple of days, now 2 of the 4 heads are spliting.

Alaskan Reefer · 02/27/2006, 07:18 PM

Should be fine, and if not there's nothing you can do other than provide the best climate possible for the coral.

I had a branching hammer like this suddenly drop from 8 heads to 1 still alive in the span of three days (no idea what happened) a few years ago, but now it's back to 12 heads. It's my small hammer.

guitarfish · 02/28/2006, 09:54 AM

Thanks for the feedback guys. This morning I still had two of the three heads open, although the damaged one seemed to be trying.

I have a lighting question. I have 260w (2x65 actinic, 2x65 10,000K). I have the hammer as high as I can place it, which is probably about 12" below the light (about 7-8" from water surface). Does that sound like it's going to get enough light?

ACBlinky · 02/28/2006, 10:10 AM

Should be okay, IME hammers do fine with PCs.
.
I've got a wall hammer under 130W PC + 28W T5 and a glass top in my 30g. It's about 20" down near the bottom of the tank and happy as can be, opening up nice and big and eating like a piggy

My branching hammer is under 300W PC on a 65g tank which is not too far off from what you've got, and has been doing really well. It's probably 16" below the lights, under a glass top as well:

I would feed the damaged head if it's willing to eat, IME LPS are really resiliant and can bounce back nicely if they're well fed. I've rescued some 'hopeless cases' that are looking fantastic now thanks to things like mysis and Cyclopeeze.

guitarfish · 02/28/2006, 10:13 AM

Nice hammer there Blinky! Thanks for the reply, I'm encouraged.

Paintbug · 02/28/2006, 10:17 AM

i have my hammer under 260w PC myself. its growing, and in full bloom

Aquabucket · 02/28/2006, 10:24 AM

I deal with branching hammers quite a bit. They are somewhat delicate shippers and can get infected easily. Its not uncommon to loose a head or a few during shipping. Look for a brown jelly like subsatnce on the receding head as it is most likely doomed and could spread the infection to the other heads. To insure the health of the 2 good heads I would remove the coral and clip off the receding head ASAP.

It would also be a good idea to then run some fresh carbon.

Good luck.

guitarfish · 02/28/2006, 10:37 AM

Aqua, what kind of tool is used to remove the damaged branch?

I had a slipper coral years ago that got brown jelly, it was pretty nasty.

Aquabucket · 02/28/2006, 10:50 AM

I use a wire cutters and clip it as far down the base as possible. You will only need to clip about a 1/4" deep or so into the skeleton and then it should break off.

A scoping saw or similar would also work.

guitarfish · 02/28/2006, 07:50 PM

I removed the dying branch tonight. Just snapped it right off at the base, a nice clean break. The two healthy heads are opened back up. Thank you everyone for your help. Now I'm just going to watch 'er and hope she grows and flourishes.

dragonyze · 02/28/2006, 07:58 PM

sorry to head that its gone. didnt you say you just got it yesterday?

guitarfish · 02/28/2006, 08:19 PM

One of the three heads was damaged at the LFS and wouldn't open, that's what I got rid of. The other two look great.

02/27/2006, 07:03 PM	#1
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	Damaged hammer coral I have a new hammer coral I got tonight, resulting from a trade at the LFS. One of the three branches appears to have some damage. I can see some of the white calcerous skeleton that would ordinarily be hidden by the polyps. Not the greatest picture. Should I leave it be and see how it does? Any suggestions would be appreciated. __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC

02/27/2006, 07:10 PM	#2
Paintbug Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Stoneville, NC Posts: 6,169	see the little thing sticking out from the coral on the right? i would remove that ASAP. it could just be getting used to your tank. mine did the same thing for a couple of days, now 2 of the 4 heads are spliting. __________________ Never ask a girl over to see your crabs!! <-Tony-> Current Tank Info: NONE currently

02/27/2006, 07:18 PM	#3
Alaskan Reefer Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Eagle River, Alaska Posts: 2,360	Should be fine, and if not there's nothing you can do other than provide the best climate possible for the coral. I had a branching hammer like this suddenly drop from 8 heads to 1 still alive in the span of three days (no idea what happened) a few years ago, but now it's back to 12 heads. It's my small hammer. __________________ Unattended children will be given double shot espresso and a free puppy. Current Tank Info: 125g FOWLR -- Conversion Back To SPS In Progress

02/28/2006, 09:54 AM	#4
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	Thanks for the feedback guys. This morning I still had two of the three heads open, although the damaged one seemed to be trying. I have a lighting question. I have 260w (2x65 actinic, 2x65 10,000K). I have the hammer as high as I can place it, which is probably about 12" below the light (about 7-8" from water surface). Does that sound like it's going to get enough light? __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC

02/28/2006, 10:10 AM	#5
ACBlinky Premium Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Peterborough, ON, Canada Posts: 4,954 Blog Entries: 20	Should be okay, IME hammers do fine with PCs. . I've got a wall hammer under 130W PC + 28W T5 and a glass top in my 30g. It's about 20" down near the bottom of the tank and happy as can be, opening up nice and big and eating like a piggy My branching hammer is under 300W PC on a 65g tank which is not too far off from what you've got, and has been doing really well. It's probably 16" below the lights, under a glass top as well: I would feed the damaged head if it's willing to eat, IME LPS are really resiliant and can bounce back nicely if they're well fed. I've rescued some 'hopeless cases' that are looking fantastic now thanks to things like mysis and Cyclopeeze. __________________ "The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the sea." - Isak Dinesen Current Tank Info: 150g mixed reef, 30g sump/refugium, LED lighting, 100lbs LR, coral beauty, flame angel, blue & yellow tangs, gobies, damsels, 6-line wrasse, lawnmower blenny, dottyback, clown pair, rabbitfish, shrimp, crabs, CUC.

02/28/2006, 10:13 AM	#6
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	Nice hammer there Blinky! Thanks for the reply, I'm encouraged. __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC

02/28/2006, 10:17 AM	#7
Paintbug Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Stoneville, NC Posts: 6,169	i have my hammer under 260w PC myself. its growing, and in full bloom __________________ Never ask a girl over to see your crabs!! <-Tony-> Current Tank Info: NONE currently

02/28/2006, 10:24 AM	#8
Aquabucket Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Green Bay, Wi. Posts: 4,455	I deal with branching hammers quite a bit. They are somewhat delicate shippers and can get infected easily. Its not uncommon to loose a head or a few during shipping. Look for a brown jelly like subsatnce on the receding head as it is most likely doomed and could spread the infection to the other heads. To insure the health of the 2 good heads I would remove the coral and clip off the receding head ASAP. It would also be a good idea to then run some fresh carbon. Good luck. __________________ "Just a drop in the bucket"

02/28/2006, 10:37 AM	#9
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	Aqua, what kind of tool is used to remove the damaged branch? I had a slipper coral years ago that got brown jelly, it was pretty nasty. __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC

02/28/2006, 10:50 AM	#10
Aquabucket Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Green Bay, Wi. Posts: 4,455	I use a wire cutters and clip it as far down the base as possible. You will only need to clip about a 1/4" deep or so into the skeleton and then it should break off. A scoping saw or similar would also work. __________________ "Just a drop in the bucket"

02/28/2006, 07:50 PM	#11
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	I removed the dying branch tonight. Just snapped it right off at the base, a nice clean break. The two healthy heads are opened back up. Thank you everyone for your help. Now I'm just going to watch 'er and hope she grows and flourishes. __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC

02/28/2006, 07:58 PM	#12
dragonyze Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Maine Posts: 60	sorry to head that its gone. didnt you say you just got it yesterday? __________________ I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand Walking through the streets of Soho in the rain He was lookin for the place called Lee Ho Fook's Gonna get a big dish of beef chow mein Current Tank Info: 40 gallon reefer with some fishes

02/28/2006, 08:19 PM	#13
guitarfish Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Milford, PA Posts: 2,666	One of the three heads was damaged at the LFS and wouldn't open, that's what I got rid of. The other two look great. __________________ "For wisdom is better than corals, and all other delights themselves cannot be made equal to it." (Proverbs 8:11) Current Tank Info: Former tank: 75g AGA MegaFlow, 30g sump, 100lb LR, MAG 9.5, AquaC EV-120w/MAG 5, Aqualight 260w PC