# Marine Aquariums > Corals questions and answers >  Mushroom problem

## Nicky M

I've got several rocks with mushrooms in my tank but I'm having problems!

One rock I have had about 10 mushrooms on that used to cover the whole rock. They have gradually got smaller and smaller and a couple have died off all together, literally shrank to nothing then when they were minute went white and died. The rest are now pretty small, yet still look very healthy.

I also had some lovely bright green ones. There were 2 rocks with about 7 bigish mushies on. 3 of these kind of went furry in the middle leaving just a green ring. 


I did think there must be something wrong with the water, but tested everything and readings are all normal. All my other corals are thriving, including a huge rock, covered in mushrooms. The fish are also not showing any signs of water problems. 

My tank phosphate level was slightly raised, but for a long time it was very very high (used to use tap water with dechlorinator) and then the corals were unaffected, so can't see how the phosphates have caused this. We eventually got the phosphates down with phosphate remover and switching to RO water.

The only change to this tank is that we now have more flow as we added 2 koralia powerheads, but the mushrooms affected are quite low in the tank and though they get more flow than they used to they are not in the immediate vacinity of the powerheads, and the flow they do get doesn't make the mushrooms move.

I did wonder if I had corals that were incompatible with each other, but All I have is zoas, leathers, star polyps and mushrooms, nothing unusual. They are quite spread about in the tank too. There is more light in this tank than the old one, but the affected corals are quite low down and I only have T5 and T8. 

Any ideas?

Any ideas? Is there anything that mushrooms are particularly sensitive too?

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## Nicky M

Sorry about the size. This is the first one, that has mushrooms which are shrinking. I've just noticed also that the clam that lived in the big hole has gone! Shell and everything. It was there 2 days ago!

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## Nicky M

This is the other that seems to have died from the middle out.

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## Nicky M

This is the third one which is oblivious to what ever is affecting the other 2!

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## Timo

What are the prams of your tank at the minute?

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## Nicky M

salinity 1.022
phosphate 1-2.5
cacium 420
PH 8.1
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0.1 (lowest reading on the chart, there isn't one for zero)
Nitrates 10
Temp looks to be 75/76 degrees (can hardly see the thermometre).

These results are from 2 days ago.

I'm really baffled about where the clam is! It came on that piece of rock and was stuck fast. Theres nothing there now, no shell or anything.

Another thing thats missing is what I think is some kind of spaghetti worm that lives in a zoa rock I have. Normally have loads of tenticles coming out of that rock. Can't remember now when I last saw them.

Mystery clicker is still okay, as are snails, crabs, fish and all other corals.

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## Timo

Looks ok the only thing i would try is to push the salidity up to 1.024-5. 

Other from that something could be eating them!

by Marty Ziegler
First published in Gravel Gossip, Diamond State Aquarium Society
Aquarticles

THE CORALS - Mushroom Anemones

Now is the time to add some animals that make your tank look like a living reef. In this article, we'll start with the corals. But first, let's get into a little coral biology, but not too deep.

Coral falls into the Phylum Cnidaria (Coelenterata) with the sea anemones and jellyfish. This is further broken down into the Class Anthozoa, which includes the hard and soft corals, sea anemones, sea pens, mushroom polyps, mushroom anemones, etc. Coral is basically broken down into hard corals and soft corals. The hard corals have a hard exoskeleton while the soft corals do not, although some soft corals appear to be fairly rigid around their base.

We are going to start with the easiest of the corals to keep, the mushroom or disc anemone, which is under the Subclass Zoantharia, Order Corallimorpharia. The mushroom anemones are not true 'anemones' or 'corals', they sort of fall between the two. There are four families, Sideractidae, Corallimorphidae, Ricordeidae, and Discosomatidae. Most of the ones we see are in the latter two families.

Mushroom anemones come in a wide variety of colors, shapes, and patterns. You could almost stock an entire reef tank with these and have more than enough variety. Generally, you will find them at your local fish store on a rock with anywhere from two or three to more than a dozen mushrooms. I currently have over a dozen variations of color and patterns of species to mix and match. They attach at their base to the rocks or the substrate and generally keep a low profile, although they can extend up several inches on their stalk, like a mushroom.

Most of the small, smooth mushrooms belong to the genus Discosoma. Some of these may have small bumps or pimples over the disc surface. Those with bubble-like tentacles covering their entire disc are from the genus Ricordea. The mushroom anemones from both of these genera range in size from one to three inches in diameter, although I have seen these get as large as five inches across. The genus Rhodactis contains the hairy mushrooms as they are covered with hair-like tentacles all over the entire disc, and range in size from two to five inches in diameter. They can swell up quite a bit with water. The largest mushroom anemones are from the genus Amplexidiscus, which have small tentacles spread out over their discs, and can reach a diameter of up to twelve inches. These are known as 'elephant ears' and are known to 'eat' fish! This is one mushroom anemone I would not recommend. I have one and have not been able to keep any gobies or blennies in the same tank, as they will eventually meet their fate as food for these large mushrooms, due to their habit of 'resting' on corals. Elephant ear mushroom anemones have a potent sting, which stuns the fish, and then they just roll up around it, trapping the fish so they can slowly digest it.

Since mushroom anemones have photosynthetic zooanthellae algae, they will need to be placed where they will get plenty of light. Metal halides, power compacts, VHO, HO, or several standard output fluorescent daylight and actinic tubes will all work for providing the minimum lighting requirements for the mushroom anemones. As far as intensity goes, they seem to do fine with moderate lighting, and can be placed on the substrate or among the rockwork. You may have to experiment a little as to placement, depending on the lighting you are using. They also do not like strong water currents. If the current is too strong, they will shrivel up and fall off the rock.

One thing I like about mushroom anemones is that they can be mixed and mingled with other varieties of mushroom anemones and you don't have to worry about most of them stinging or killing their neighbors, like some soft and hard corals can do. The majority of them can be kept in close proximity or can even touch other mushroom anemones and most other reef inhabitants. They propagate by moving along a rock, sometimes leaving a piece behind, to turn into a new mushroom anemone, which is known as pedal laceration. Another form of reproduction is through budding. I have placed a small rock next to the mushroom anemone rock so a couple of mushrooms could 'jump' over to it. I'd move this newly inhabited mushroom rock around to the different varieties of mushroom rocks until I had an assortment of colors and patterns on the one rock. You can also propagate them by slicing in half with a sharp knife or razor blade. Each half will develop into a new mushroom anemone.

Occasionally, one will jump off the rock and fall to the substrate, where it may take up residence. You can carefully move these to a different location, as long as you place them in a depression in a rock or substrate where the water current is not too strong. Otherwise, they will be blown back out into the water column.

Most mushroom anemones can be fed baby or adult brine shrimp, invertebrate food, or finely chopped seafood, but it is not necessary for the ones with zooanthellae algae, as they will derive most of their nutrition from photosynthesis. It is a good idea to use an iodine additive weekly to your tank, as this is essential to the mushroom anemones growth. Although there is usually iodine additive in your salt mix, it can be depleted quite rapidly, within a few days, with a moderately stocked aquarium and a properly sized protein skimmer. Again, the available varieties seem almost endless. They are very hardy, require only moderate lighting, do not require manual feeding, and grow and reproduce easily in a properly maintained reef aquarium.

This will be the last article until September. At that time, we will look at some other easy to keep corals from the Subclass Zoantharia, such as the mushroom polyps. Until then, happy reefkeeping!

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## Nicky M

Thanks for that. I know the first green mushroom that went was blown off the rock from the new powerheads which is why I moved them to a spot with less flow..

The brown ones though just look tiny. They don't look like they've been nibbled at. here's a pic from a few weeks ago. 



I'm doing a water change sometime over the weekend, so I'll up the salinity then.

Regarding the clam, they don't ever move do they?

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## Timo

Yes clams do move, the can swim quite fast. I once had an electric clam and when i tried to move it the thing sped off, they clam in and out fast to move. They normally dig into a rocky part on the floor of your tank. They also like to bury themselves in the sand sometimes.

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## Nicky M

Hmmm, wonder if it's still in there then. I knew the fancy ones you can buy move, but the ones I have all came attached to the rock and have been stuck fast. This one I've had since about last april when we had the orca and it's always been in the same place. 

The shell is dark purple too so it will be really hard to spot on most of the rock.

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## Timo

Mushrooms tend to like a low flow of water over them and no strong currents. Supplements like iodine and trace elements might help.

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## Nicky M

Thanks for all your advice. I added a dose of calcium/strontium/molybdenum/iodine supliment a few days ago, so hopefully that will help.

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## Timo

No problem, fingers crossed and it might start to thrive again soon!

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## plankton

> My tank phosphate level was slightly raised, but for a long time it was very very high (used to use tap water with dechlorinator) and then the corals were unaffected, so can't see how the phosphates have caused this. We eventually got the phosphates down with phosphate remover and switching to RO water.


hi nicky

do you have any carbon in your filters or sump?
 carbon will remove harmful toxins,organic waste producks and yellowing from the water which will improve the health of your livestock and improve the penetration of light leaving your aquarium crystal clear.
just with you saying that you used tap water 
theres a lot of toxins in tap water that are harmful to marine life 
(jmo but always use ro water when topping or water changers)

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## Nicky M

Thinking about it I haven't had a carbon filter in the last 2 times I've done a filter clean. I ran out and hadn't thought to get any more when I've been in fish shops. I'll get some at the weekend.

Probably forgot as the coldwater tank doen't have carbon in unless I'm removing meds.

I do only use RO water now. Originally followed my father in laws advice when setting up the first tank. He's old school and RO water wasn't even around when he used to keep marine fish (at least he said it wasn't).

He set up his new tank last Christmas and I've only just talked him into swapping to RO. We did look into buying an RO unit buth LFS said as we only have a 220 litre tank which it wouldn't be cost effective as it has to be running all the time to stop the filters drying out.

The brown mushroom seems to be perking up a bit now. The mushies are definitely looking bigger. The green ones have had it though. All but 2 have died from the middle out (now look like rings)and the 2 that are left are tiny and have shrunk like the brown ones were doing. Annoying as they were an electcric green colour and probably the brightest thing in the tank.

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