Duncan dying-please help

[DI68]

My duncan was huge and healthy but close to another coral so I moved it. I have since noticed a section that has been bleaching and when I inspected the coral to make sure there were no nudibranches, the flesh was hanging out in strings and the underside shows the bleaching is spreading across the coral. Any ideas what would cause this and how to stop it further? I moved it as it had really grown quite large and now to see it dying is distressing.

 

[mr_X]

You might have to frag it, cutting away the dead flesh completely in order to stop it. If it continues, it's your only hope.

 

[DI68]

Thanks Doug. I thought the same....will check if my son has a diamond drill.

 

[DI68]

My duncan was huge and healthy but close to another coral so I moved it. I have since noticed a section that has been bleaching and when I inspected the coral to make sure there were no nudibranches, the flesh was hanging out in strings and the underside shows the bleaching is spreading across the coral. Any ideas what would cause this and how to stop it further? I moved it as it had really grown quite large and now to see it dying is View attachment 235493View attachment 235494View attachment 235495View attachment 235496distressing.

I am going to google it again but based on the shape I am thinking that by flesh you mean to cut away the full sections bleached like cutting broccoli stalks...straight down...not actually cutting/shaving the sides which look bleached? The last time I tried to "saw" another Duncan -my first encounter with nudibranches...it didn't survive. Don't know if it was too late for the Duncan or my technique which killed it : (

 

[mr_X]

Yes, that's correct. Cut right through the skeleton and flesh, cutting away any dead tissue. Make sure you cut some live tissue away with the dead, otherwise you haven't arrested anything. I have used wire cutters to frag duncans before. If you don't have a dremel, that is.

 

[DI68]

We have a hacksaw which is what we used last time. Is that OK?

 

[Sniperhank]

We have a hacksaw which is what we used last time. Is that OK?

That would be fine.
It is interesting that that spot isn't doing so well...I'd want to suspect some sort of damaged when you were moving it. I've been pretty rough with my duncan colonies and never had anything as severe happen to them, even when they fell over onto the hammer coral while I was at work. But this does remind me of when I accidentally damaged the skeleton around the head on my torch coral. It expelled and was gone rather quickly.

 

[DI68]

That would be fine.
It is interesting that that spot isn't doing so well...I'd want to suspect some sort of damaged when you were moving it. I've been pretty rough with my duncan colonies and never had anything as severe happen to them, even when they fell over onto the hammer coral while I was at work. But this does remind me of when I accidentally damaged the skeleton around the head on my torch coral. It expelled and was gone rather quickly.

this was the Duncan earlier. We moved house 3wks ago and it was still great but the composition of the tank was different -it was my priority and a major panic to set it back up again...not necessarily the same with buckets, coral, sand, fish equipment etc everywhere!As it turned out I moved an elegance near it and they both spread out more than I could have imagined so maybe the damage is from the elegance stinging it?

 

[Sniperhank]

Maybe...I'd be more leaning towards damaged in the move, but either are possible. Duncan are the opposite of aggressive, so you might want to move it.

 

[DI68]

This composition is at the new house but I moved the elegance where the green one is (can't remember name). The elegance sat much deeper into the rocks but just thrived and spanned out and I could see it touching the Duncan but it didn't recoil..

 

[Sniperhank]

This composition is at the new house but I moved the elegance where the green one is (can't remember name). The elegance sat much deeper into the rocks but just thrived and spanned out and I could see it touching the Duncan but it didn't recoil..

If they are touching, I think you might have found the issue... Elegance are quite aggressive.

 

[DI68]

I have seen stringy,hair like white worms hanging around the back of the tank and wall. No idea what they are or if they are harmful.Would they be irritating the flesh of the Duncan?

 

[DI68]

Thanks......moved it too late : (

 

[DI68]

Doug looking at the first pic, the right side is pink with a band spread across the base. Do we cut right through that discoloured area horizontally or just separate the stalks vertically? I watched a video of a guy with a full bandsaw trimming away everything nicely to make little frags but I would prefer to minimise the stress to it....do they get stressed being fragged ( cut to pieces)?

 

[Sniperhank]

Stress should be minimal. I accidentally frag branching coral all the time without issue.

 

[mr_X]

Doug looking at the first pic, the right side is pink with a band spread across the base. Do we cut right through that discoloured area horizontally or just separate the stalks vertically? I watched a video of a guy with a full bandsaw trimming away everything nicely to make little frags but I would prefer to minimise the stress to it....do they get stressed being fragged ( cut to pieces)?

Something like this---

That brown jelly-like substance that's touching the other heads is concerning. You would want to pull that out of the tank and shake it off in a bucket of salt water at least. An iodine dip might be helpful also.

 

[DI68]

Thanks guys : )

 

[barrycuda]

It looks like You have your duncans about half way up under a spotlight area of your LED lighting? I burned 3 or 4 heads on my colony with to much light from LED's. I Moved it to lower and under less direct light and it is doing fine.

 

[mr_X]

It's not indicative of too much light. The entire coral would be bleaching, not just a patch.

 

[DI68]

I bought the dremel and fragged it as per your pic Doug but the smaller piece is continuing to bleach (no brown jelly) as is another which was thriving. I have lost one head of the other established Duncan which was in a different location and other heads on that one aren't opening as they had previously. Would it be my KH? It has dropped from 9 early Feb down to 7 late Feb and I just tested again and it's at 5???? I bought 80 litres of water yesterday to do a change today (300L tank)