deteriorating duster?

[nemoisfound]

I have a featherduster that looks like its feathers are deteriorating. the featers have gotten shorter since i first got it weeks ago. Is it not getting enough food? I squirt coral plankton to feed my corals, should that be enought or do i need to get some other type of food? It is also in a medium amount of water flow. do i need to move it to a low water flow area? thanks

 

[Witfull]

how are your nitrates..they can burn dusters.

 

[nemoisfound]

nitrite and nitrate checked out ok. Anything else i sould check? current is kind of strong in the area.

 

[Elmo18]

Just want to give a heads up, feather dusters will at times, though not often, will lose their 'feathers', and replace them with new ones. Yours is possibly doing this. Mine has done it twice since i've had it. Mine hitchhiked on a rock, as i haven't bought a real big feather duster.

The large Hawaiian feather dusters will do that also.

I still would not rule out bad water chemisty/quality. Double check everything.

- Elmo

 

[nemoisfound]

yea mine is a hawaiian feather duster. what kind of waterflow do you have your duster in?

 

[Witfull]

dusters like a medium current, preferably with cross current....when you say nitrates are ok...what is the number?

 

[nemoisfound]

nitrates reads 0

 

[Witfull]

is anything nipping at them...angels or butterflies?

 

[Elmo18]

I've got mine along the bottom by the sandbed with low flow. They are filter feeders. Will not get much food with too much flow. I have some flow around it, but not much. Avoid direct current.

If all tests are reasonable, and have been double checked, and assuming your test kits are good , it may just be losing its 'feathers' and will grow back a new one. I thought mine was dying too when i saw it get shorter and shorter. Week or two later, was back with full plume.

- Elmo

 

[Desolas]

It is a bad sign if the new plume of feathers is shorter than the last, they typically shed their crown when they aren't getting enough food; they downsize as an effort to conserve energy (requires more to maintain a larger crown)

Being that most feed off of phytoplankton I would suggest that you be adding it to your water, or trying to target them with it to ensure they are getting enough nutrients.

This link may be of use as well ..
http://www.dtplankton.com/feathers.htm

 

[nemoisfound]

I don't have anything nipping at them, It might be lack of food. How do you target feed them? Is coral plankton ok?

 

[Crows Ridge]

Nemo,


I have never directly fed mine, nor do I add phyto, so I would check the water and irritants one more time. Ive had mine in some really bad conditions while I was away for work 2 weeks at a time. This one has been up to about 88 degrees, so much water evaporated the salinity was off the scale etc.....

We have had this one for about 3 years, maybe 4. We had one lose its top from the stress of moving from a torn down tank, then it moved out of its tube and a hitchiker wrasse killed it. (One of those newspaper, selling everything ads).

Anyway, good luck and keep an eye out.

Chris