Tasty Gorgonian Sheddings anyone???

[Nano_Steve]

My purple stick gorgonian has just recently been sheddingits outter layer, i dont know if it is normal or not but it is a beautiful vibrant purple underneath!!! anyways, its been going on for about a week now and the old sheddings are still littered around the sandbed, does anyone know of a critter that eats gorgonian sheddings? i have two pj cardinals, a blue damsel, and a monster serpent star that aren't interested in eating any of it.

any help is appreciated, steve

[phage]

The shedding is normal, mine does it routinely. The only thing you listed that might eat it is the brittle star, but i'd bet hermits or nassarius snails would be the most likely.

[Nano_Steve]

ive got tons of both and they still dont seem to be doing anything :? ive got 6 hermits and 9 lazzarus snails and they jst walk past them completely, i still have sheddings from last week laying around, i had to pick them out before

[Nano_Steve]

is there a specific species of hermit i need to have to get the job done? i have blue legged hermits right now.

[phage]

No idea. I don't have any hermits/crabs in my tank at all, only snails, and I never see any of the shedded (word?!) material anywhere. Maybe it just gets sucked up in the overflow before i see it. My reeftec does make quite a bit of flow, so that may be the case.

[MikeP]

Mine does the same thing. The shed looks like cellophane. I am assuming you have the purple sea whips - I want to get about 4 more of these and make a small waving forest at the bottom of tank.