If this is true what ones should we look out for. What are other safety concerns that we may not know about?
I have heard that people got rashes, swollen lips after had handle zoo or ply and touch their mouth, swollen hand and fingers from having open sores.
For me anytime I touch or frag zoo or ply, I make sure I was my hands with soap afterward. Actually anytime I touch any corals at that.
From what I have read this is true. This toxin is known as palytoxin and is what the natives used for the tip of their poisoin darts. What i understand is that not all palys or zoas have this toxin in them however you should treat all palys or zoas as they have this toxin becuase we don’t know which ones have the toxin and which ones do not. Palytoxin is one of the most complex toxins in the world and there is no known antidote you just have to let the toxin run its course. Bottom line is whever you are handleing coral/fragging you should take the proper precautions. The toxin can get in your body through your eyes, nose, or open cuts.
Here is a good read. I think its in the link as well. Bottom line is whenver you are handleing coral/fragging you should take the proper precautions to protect yourself and others around you.
Man for the longest time Craig and many others would roll their eyes any time I warned someone.(because I would warn everyone a million times over) It appears as if we have not said enough about it recently.
[quote=“reefman66, post:2, topic:5746”]
Actually anytime I touch any corals at that. [/quote]
I not only think everyone should practice this, but I wash my hands with soap any time I touch saltwater(unless it is in my salt mixing vats at home that I know saltwater with life in it goes no where near)
If the thought of a deadly neuron toxin does not scare you enough picture this. You go to the emergency room because you touched a Zoanthid and then touched your eye and you can’t see or touched your lips and you can’t taste anything any more. You tell the doctor it is Palytoxin and he walks out of the room. After waiting and waiting you look behind the curtain to find the doctor on google.com This has happened.
Beautiful, delicate, aggressive, and deadly. Could be because it’s late at night after a late night last night, but I think we need to give corals a little…
Yeah well I never doubted the toxicity of the corals we keep. I just felt bad for the horse Jon 
We must remember that corals use chemicals for self-defense (we’ve all heard talk of chemical warfare between them), when you handle a coral you’ll often notice they “slime” - the slime is the corals natural defense mechanism. Please remember that it’s not only palys and zoas.
Perfect example of what happens when you’re not careful:
I received a frag at a monthly meeting, I got home, acclimated, and went to put it in the tank. As usually happens I wasn’t pleased witht he “astetics” ofthe tank and started rearranging a few things. I remember picking up my hammer coral (euphyllia) and moving it a few times – even noticed how slimey it had gotten – came upstairs, washed my hands (and brushed my teeth for those that are tracking my every movement here) to went to bed.
What I failed to realize I did, was between the time I pulled my hands out of the tank, dried them on my towel, and went upstairs I had apparently scratched an itch near my eye.
I woke up at 2am with an intence fire burning in my eye - I don’t mean it stung - I mean it felt like someone was holding a lit cigar to my eyeball. I remember having the distinct thought “I have a knife in the nightstand - it would hurt less if I just plucked my eyeball from my head”.
I flushed, and flushed, and flushed my eye again - to no avail, I could not stop the burning.
When I got to the doctor I had a sever case of pink eye, my eye was swollen shut, and I was placed on antibiotics for a week to counteract any other damage the toxins may be doing to my body.
Wow that’s scary! And another note glad you brushed your teeth lol
yea, what Jon and Craig said…
take these warnings seriously people. wear gloves and eye protection when you frag, and honestly its probably best any time you are handling corals. the horror stories abound. its really not worth it. also, dont keep reusing that same fish towel! either use disposable or wash them regularly. keep pets and children away from contaminated materials as well…
I have noticed in the past when handling certain corals My nose will burn and sometimes my mouth and throat would feel funny. I think some of the toxins can become airborne. I only noticed that when I did some moving around or fragging and only got that feeling when messing with corals.
I’ve gotten my eyes slimed a couple times from handling zoos and palys in the tank. i though i had washed my hands and dried,. and probably rubbed my eyes. apparently i didnt get it all from under the finger nails or something, because an hour later my eye started to burn, get all puffy, and red. got all black and blue arround the eye like a shiner for about a week. that was just a mild dose. not a direct squirt they are famous for doing when you touch them out of water. that would be terrible.
The palytoxin is deadly to ingest too. be carful carrying them around the house, if its slime drips on the rug, kids or pets can get it crawling around, and kids lick their fingers and pets clean their paws. so always put them in a bowl to move outside the tank.