Hey guys, just looking for some opinions on a particular problem I've been having lately. Before I go into any more detail, I'd just like to clarify that I do have a decent amount of knowledge about polys and individual growth rates, but I personally think that my problem isn't just that. I'll explain and let you guys decide.
So, I got a shipment in from Toyin in February consisting of three dels, a weeksii, and for whatever reason I got an ornate that I didn't order. No complaints here. The dels all came in at around 3" as did the ornate. All the polys appeared to be healthy and started eating right off the bat. One of the dels unfortunately died a few weeks later, of what appeared to be impaction, so my fault on that one. One of the dels grew fairly quickly, was moved out of the growout, and is now around 7" or so, same with the ornate. The smallest del, however, and I'm not exaggerating this, looks like it has not grown more than 1/4"-1/2". I got some mokes a few months later that even grew faster. Now, I know about individual growth rates, but this seems a little bit extreme.
As for potential causes, I can't seem to find many that are plausible. I know it has been eating, I've seen it personally and it has also increased it girth. In fact, it's a pretty voracious eater. I feed them a staple of OmegaOne sinking shrimp pellets, along with frozen bloodworms and f/d and frozen brine shrimp. They also will very rarely get shrimp or some other type of seafood. One possibility that crossed my mind early on was that it was a shortbody, but it looks proportionally correct, and I never really thought that was much of a possibility anyways. I also medicated them when I got them, so while the possibility of parasites is possible, it seems unlikely. My water params are also fine, the quality is good, and all the other fish in the tank are fine. The temp is at 81-82 degrees F.
The only possibility I can really think of is that it's just some kind of genetic defect, a runt essentially. If anyone else has ever had a poly grow quite this slow, or has any ideas as to why it's growing so slow, just let me now. I'd really like to figure it out, this little guy has a really nice pattern and I want to get him into the main tank so I can move on with my plans for the growout.
Thanks!
So, I got a shipment in from Toyin in February consisting of three dels, a weeksii, and for whatever reason I got an ornate that I didn't order. No complaints here. The dels all came in at around 3" as did the ornate. All the polys appeared to be healthy and started eating right off the bat. One of the dels unfortunately died a few weeks later, of what appeared to be impaction, so my fault on that one. One of the dels grew fairly quickly, was moved out of the growout, and is now around 7" or so, same with the ornate. The smallest del, however, and I'm not exaggerating this, looks like it has not grown more than 1/4"-1/2". I got some mokes a few months later that even grew faster. Now, I know about individual growth rates, but this seems a little bit extreme.
As for potential causes, I can't seem to find many that are plausible. I know it has been eating, I've seen it personally and it has also increased it girth. In fact, it's a pretty voracious eater. I feed them a staple of OmegaOne sinking shrimp pellets, along with frozen bloodworms and f/d and frozen brine shrimp. They also will very rarely get shrimp or some other type of seafood. One possibility that crossed my mind early on was that it was a shortbody, but it looks proportionally correct, and I never really thought that was much of a possibility anyways. I also medicated them when I got them, so while the possibility of parasites is possible, it seems unlikely. My water params are also fine, the quality is good, and all the other fish in the tank are fine. The temp is at 81-82 degrees F.
The only possibility I can really think of is that it's just some kind of genetic defect, a runt essentially. If anyone else has ever had a poly grow quite this slow, or has any ideas as to why it's growing so slow, just let me now. I'd really like to figure it out, this little guy has a really nice pattern and I want to get him into the main tank so I can move on with my plans for the growout.
Thanks!
