Xenia & Zoanthids

[dwall174]

I have a nice size stalk of Xenia that’s being overtaken by a colony of Zoanthids! The base of the Xenia is about the size of a quarter & it’s half way surrounded by the Zoo’s! Will they harm each other? Or will the Zoo’s just grow around the Xenia?

 

[The Claw]

My money is on the zoo's. kicking butt.

 

[dwall174]

Well if that’s the case! How would I go about trying to move the Xenia?

 

[wrightme43]

frag it with a razor blade and move parts of it. within reason the more frags you make the better chance of survial. This has worked for me. a plastic bowl, with lots of little peices of live rock. cut the coral up into the bowl with salt water in it. Put the bowl back in the tank, low flow, good but not extremly high light area. they will rapidly attach and you will have several colonys. HTH

 

[Woodstock]

The xenia should peel right off the rock easily. I frag mine this way monthly.

 

[dwall174]

I don’t really care to frag it! I already have enough xenia in my tank & fuge. This one is a single stalk of pom pom xenia with three branches that form a nice symmetrical ball about 5” dia.

What would be the chanches that the zoo's would just grow around it & not harm anything?

 

[dwall174]

The xenia should peel right off the rock easily.

Any tricks to getting it to peel off! I tried that once before & it just tore off.

 

[dwall174]

Ok I ended up trying to peel it off & I still had to cut a little piece of it off! I used a small rubber band & attached the base to another piece of rock. The stalk which was about 1” dia. flattened out & does not hold the head up anymore, Also the head shrank to about ¼ of its original size! How long does it usually take for the xenia to recover from being cut & moved?

 

[plack]

when i got my 1st and only 2 pcs i rubber banded them to rock and within 2-3 days they attached themselves and they seemed to close up and shrink near the end of the day but later came to life just fine i had low lighting and they came from a hi light tank so i placed them near the light and they survived just fine I am presently acclimating slowly up to 440 watts vho for my 55 gallon and them still seem fine just give it time and I think alll will be well but I've only been reefing for 5 month's

 

[wrightme43]

Plack, you have to be doing something right, some people only reef for 2 weeks, and have a nice soup, as a result. LOL.