Xenia
- Thread starter Simon1
- Start date
Ah, Xenia... they don't care much about calcium, but that's not important.
It is a "good" coral to start since it is pretty much all aquacultured nowadays. It can be a tricky coral though... since if not happy with the new environment, it can completely disappeared within days.
So go ahead if it is aquacultured, and your LFS does not charge you an arm and a leg for it. Don't be too disappointed if it disappeared.
IMHO, other softies are much better choice, such as mushroom and zoanthids. Some LPS are also good choice, such as frog spawn, but they typically need slightly more light than softies.
It is a "good" coral to start since it is pretty much all aquacultured nowadays. It can be a tricky coral though... since if not happy with the new environment, it can completely disappeared within days.
So go ahead if it is aquacultured, and your LFS does not charge you an arm and a leg for it. Don't be too disappointed if it disappeared.
IMHO, other softies are much better choice, such as mushroom and zoanthids. Some LPS are also good choice, such as frog spawn, but they typically need slightly more light than softies.
The one thing to keep in mind is that they are poor shippers. If your LFS gets them from distributors with good practices, than that's a major plus. Once established, they are very hardy and are voracious feeders which is why they are sometimes used for nutrient export in refugiums.
Yes once aquacultrued it grows fast I have 3 stalks in one month all from a frag. I kow have to place rock rubble around them so they dont continue to spread. It was the frist softyI put in my tank. I suggest making sure they are healthy before purchasing them from the LFS. Then when you purchase it bring a cooler with you and put it in the cooler even if its only a 10 minute drive. Spend a few hours accilimating I would go with the drip method for these softies they do just die from being moved.
Piece of advice if you get a healthy one. When they get a bump on the stalk, looks like a wart, that should tell you they plan on spliting and you better have a rock by that bump so it latches on to your rubble and you can Frag it off other wise you'll have xenia all over your tank. Good luck.
Piece of advice if you get a healthy one. When they get a bump on the stalk, looks like a wart, that should tell you they plan on spliting and you better have a rock by that bump so it latches on to your rubble and you can Frag it off other wise you'll have xenia all over your tank. Good luck.
I'd say Xenia is hit or miss. Some people have good luck, some bad and some a weird mixture. I purchased two pieces of Xenia from the same store about two months apart. The first piece made itself right at home but the second one dissolved w/in the first few weeks. I still have the original one and it's doing fine so your guess is as good as mine on what went wrong w/ the second purchase.
Personally I find it hard to keep my eyes open if I become too entranced w/ the pulsing and waving of it...
I would definately recommend giving it a try. :wink:
Personally I find it hard to keep my eyes open if I become too entranced w/ the pulsing and waving of it...
I would definately recommend giving it a try. :wink:
I agree - it is cool if you get the pulsing kind. Mine is sensitive to alkalinity - in fact I (and I hate to post this) watch how fast or slow it pulses and it is a fairly good indicator of alk as I am fairly lazy about testing. In any case once you get it aclaimated it grows like a weed and can be somewhat of nuisance.
i thought it pulsed faster or slower with the decrease/increase in pH? hell if you were close enough id ship you some it grows that fast and i have some i dont need, but Denver is too far from me to attemp shipping it...the guy who fragged it to me lives next door(state) and was kinda reluctant to ship to me but he was the closest to me and he knew it...
Thanks for all the advice. I bought the xenia and some torch coral the same day. Acclimation went well, and both corals are doing great. However my two false percs are driving the torch crazy. I don't know what species of xenia I purchansed, but I love it. Am I crazy, or have I seen a variation that is pink?
I think alot depends on the type of Xenia you get. Some seem to be more sensitive than others. Xenia elongata seems to be one of the easiest to keep and can quickly become a problem if not harvested regularly. If kept in check, allowing it to grow over a large rock can make quite a beautiful display. Once it takes off though, the biggest challenge is keeping it from spreading all over the tank.
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