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Pet Forum / Aquaria / Marine Reef / October 2006Question about getting rid of Aptasia?
I apologize for posting so much in one day. I have had to travel a lot and unfortunately kind of got behind with my fishtank. I am adding one fish I lost hopefully as well as getting a new fish but first and foremost I want to get rid of a Aptasia problem I have. I have had aptasia in my tank for around 2 years now and they only seem to get worse. Finally around 2 months ago I bought some Joe's Juice. This works better than anything I have tried. In the past I used vinegar. I shoot it into the aptasia and then they do seem to go away but then in a couple weeks they all start coming back slowly so it never seems to get rid of them but as well it at least knocks them back for awhile so they don't get out of control. This is at least better than what I had at first and as I said I used vinegar earlier. Now my question, how can I finally get rid of them for good? Is there any other type of solution or way of using Joe's Juice. I have heard that another way is to add a certain type of fish or even add Peppermint shrimp. Should I look at either of these two options? Are there any side affects to using a certain type of fish (what type is it?) or peppermint shrimp and after the problem is gone would I have to get rid of the fish or shrimp? I've had this tank about 4 years and for coral only have blue mushrooms. I have a lot of live rock and for fish I have one false Percula clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a sailfin tang, and a Yellow Tang. Thanks for any help. Peppermint shrimp, very good at the smaller Aiptasia. Might ignore them if there is something more interesting to eat. Copperband butterfly, Mine stripped the tank of Aiptasia within 36 hours of adding him to the tank, BUT, some are very hard to get to feed. Berghia verrucicornis Nudibranch. Could get eaten in the tank and are not cheap. >I apologize for posting so much in one day. I have had to travel a > lot and unfortunately kind of got behind with my fishtank. I am adding [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > Percula clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a sailfin tang, and a Yellow Tang. > Thanks for any help. > Peppermint shrimp, very good at the smaller Aiptasia. Might ignore them if > there is something more interesting to eat. > > Copperband butterfly, Mine stripped the tank of Aiptasia within 36 hours of > adding him to the tank, BUT, some are very hard to get to feed. Same here. Amazing how fast he got it all but he refuses to eat anything but frozen brine or mysis shrimp. -K Peppermint shrimp worked for me. Bill >I apologize for posting so much in one day. I have had to travel a > lot and unfortunately kind of got behind with my fishtank. I am adding [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > Percula clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a sailfin tang, and a Yellow Tang. > Thanks for any help. I am considering getting either a Peppermint Shrimp or a Coral Banded (I believe that is the name) Butterfly fish. The only downside I've heard is down the line the butterfly fish is hard to feed. As well, are there any long term side affects of keeping the shrimp or butterfly fish or are they something I'd have to get rid of? I have heard they can pick up coral and all I have are blue mushrooms. You mean "pick on coral" :-) Yep they can, sometimes, and yes the butterfly is often difficult to get to feed. The peppermint shrimp will only eat the small aiptasia, and the butterfly will eat all that he can see. Wayne Sallee Wayne's Pets Wayne@WaynesPets.com MarkW wrote on 10/21/2006 7:30 PM: > I am considering getting either a Peppermint Shrimp or a Coral Banded > (I believe that is the name) Butterfly fish. The only downside I've > heard is down the line the butterfly fish is hard to feed. As well, > are there any long term side affects of keeping the shrimp or > butterfly fish or are they something I'd have to get rid of? I have > heard they can pick up coral and all I have are blue mushrooms. >You mean "pick on coral" :-) > [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] >> butterfly fish or are they something I'd have to get rid of? I have >> heard they can pick up coral and all I have are blue mushrooms. Yeah, I mean 'pick on coral' :) I have a lot of aiptasia, some fairly large. For a 120 gallon tank how many Peppermint shrimp would I need? I have a fish store I deal with often so I will check with them to see if I could return a Butterfly fish to them. I'm not sure if that's something that is done often. That's what a lot of people do, is rent out the copper banded butterfly fish. I myself don't stock the butterfly fish because they are hard to keep, and I don't like selling something that can't be kept. But a lot of stores sell them, and will rent them out to you. Wayne Sallee Wayne's Pets Wayne@WaynesPets.com MarkW wrote on 10/21/2006 7:48 PM: >> You mean "pick on coral" :-) >> [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > if I could return a Butterfly fish to them. I'm not sure if that's > something that is done often. > For a 120 gallon tank how many Peppermint shrimp would I need? I would also be interested in an answer to this question, just in case. I think I don't have any aiptasia yet, but I've had to deal with it in the past and don't want to use a butterfly again. George Patterson All successes in conservation are temporary. All defeats are permanent. First, Terry you were right on with your answer. Those three, plus Joe's Juice, are the best options. Caution with the Copperband, it is hard (read-almost impossible) to get this fish to feed on manufactured or cultivated non-living food. Please don't use this fish unless you have the matured and lightly fish loaded reef tank with refugium to support it. Most people don't. Course, correct me if I'm wrong and there is a good way to feed this butterfly. The nudibranch (http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet.cfm?base=bergverraq) Terry mentioned is awesome! Except it won't eat the largest aiptasia and will eat it's food source completely if given the chance. That being said, I used it in a 54 corner so maybe with the larger tank you may have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to avoid right? The peppermint shrimp. (Note the website at the end that will keep you out of future trouble by making sure you know what this one looks like and not the phony.) This is your best option. (I'm going to assume you have only mushrooms, the afforementioned fish and approximately 1-1.5 lbs of liverock per gallon, also all the normal operating equipment) First use Joe's Juice to knock all the aiptasia that you can see. Now you want to limit the organics in your aquarium. This is going to help the peppermint shrimp decide to eat your aiptasia. So, after a few days blast your live rock with a powerhead or turkey baster to suspend any detritus. Immediately perform a fairly significant water change (30%-50%). (However with a water volume change like this you must ensure that your replacement water matches the tank water (temp, ph, sp. gravity)). 24 Hours or so later you're ready to introduce your peppermint shrimp (remember to SLOWLY acclimate them to the water conditions). As far as a number, I'm not sure there is an accepted answer, however you have some nice advantages with these shrimp. They work well in colonies. They are easy to feed. And they do a fairly good job of keeping the live rock detritus free. I'm not going to give you a number. But I'll tell you that I had 3 in my 54 corner and did the above process, the aiptasia is now gone. That being said... Aiptasia are very effective at pulling nutrients from the water and are even used in filtration systems similar to an algae scrubber... Best of luck... Russ PS. Make sure you get the right shrimp... http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/aiptasia/aippepshrpf aqs.htm > > For a 120 gallon tank how many Peppermint shrimp would I need?I would also be interested in an answer to this question, just in case. I think > I don't have any aiptasia yet, but I've had to deal with it in the past and > don't want to use a butterfly again. > > George Patterson > All successes in conservation are temporary. All defeats are permanent. Russ wrote on 10/26/2006 11:55 AM: > The nudibranch > (http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet.cfm?base=bergverraq) Terry [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to > avoid right? Actually they will eat aiptasia of any size, but they tend to get killed in the reef tank. Wayne Sallee Wayne's Pets Wayne@WaynesPets.com Ok, Wayne, thanks for the correction. > Russ wrote on 10/26/2006 11:55 AM: > > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > Wayne's Pets > Wayne@WaynesPets.com > Caution with the Copperband, it is hard (read-almost impossible) to get > this fish to feed on manufactured or cultivated non-living food. > Please don't use this fish unless you have the matured and lightly fish > loaded reef tank with refugium to support it. Most people don't. > Course, correct me if I'm wrong and there is a good way to feed this > butterfly. I'm pretty much a newb as far as this goes with only a few years experience under my belt but I've had a copperband in my tank for a couple of months now - purchased to rid the tank of Aiptasia which it did over the course of a day - and it's still happy and healthy. It's just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp. 100g display, 40g in the 'fuge and sump, DSB. -K >and it's still happy and healthy. It's > just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always > eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp. Kelsey... Thank you for the encouraging words both for aiptasia control and butterfly husbandry. It's nice to know that success is possible with these delicates. I know it's a little off topic as far as the aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start feeding in captivity? Live food? Well,, um aiptasia are a type of live food :-) Wayne Sallee Wayne's Pets Wayne@WaynesPets.com Russ wrote on 10/27/2006 7:30 AM: >> and it's still happy and healthy. It's >> just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start > feeding in captivity? Live food? LOL, guess I should have thought a little more on that one... I think I was meaning after the aiptasia was gone, did you have to feed live or did it take right to frozen? LOL > Well,, um aiptasia are a type of live food :-) > [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > > aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start > > feeding in captivity? Live food?- Hide quoted text -- Show quoted text - >> and it's still happy and healthy. It's >> just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start > feeding in captivity? Live food? Nope, he was perfectly happy to eat frozen mysis and brine shrimp right after I got him. He did pretty much just hide for about a week, but still obliterated the aiptasia. I don't know if this was the work of the LFS or if I just got lucky. I figure the worst case is you can end up 'renting' the fish and take him back to the LFS once the aiptasia is cleaned up if he isn't eating well. So, what about getting rid of majanos? Is chemical treatment the only viable option. (joe's juice, kalk, etc?) -K Kelsey Cummings wrote on 10/27/2006 2:02 PM: > So, what about getting rid of majanos? Is chemical treatment the only > viable option. (joe's juice, kalk, etc?) > > -K They are easy to remove. They are not as tuf as aiptasia. Wayne Sallee Wayne's Pets Wayne@WaynesPets.com First, Terry you were right on with your answer. Those three, plus Joe's Juice, are the best options. Caution with the Copperband, it is hard (read-almost impossible) to get this fish to feed on manufactured or cultivated non-living food. Please don't use this fish unless you have the matured and lightly fish loaded reef tank with refugium to support it. Most people don't. Course, correct me if I'm wrong and there is a good way to feed this butterfly. The nudibranch (http://www.seaslugforum.net/factsheet.cfm?base=bergverraq) Terry mentioned is awesome! Except it won't eat the largest aiptasia and will eat it's food source completely if given the chance. That being said, I used it in a 54 corner so maybe with the larger tank you may have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to avoid right? The peppermint shrimp. (Note the website at the end that will keep you out of future trouble by making sure you know what this one looks like and not the phony.) This is your best option. (I'm going to assume you have only mushrooms, the afforementioned fish and approximately 1-1.5 lbs of liverock per gallon, also all the normal operating equipment) First use Joe's Juice to knock all the aiptasia that you can see. Now you want to limit the organics in your aquarium. This is going to help the peppermint shrimp decide to eat your aiptasia. So, after a few days blast your live rock with a powerhead or turkey baster to suspend any detritus. Immediately perform a fairly significant water change (30%-50%). (However with a water volume change like this you must ensure that your replacement water matches the tank water (temp, ph, sp. gravity)). 24 Hours or so later you're ready to introduce your peppermint shrimp (remember to SLOWLY acclimate them to the water conditions). As far as a number, I'm not sure there is an accepted answer, however you have some nice advantages with these shrimp. They work well in colonies. They are easy to feed. And they do a fairly good job of keeping the live rock detritus free. I'm not going to give you a number. But I'll tell you that I had 3 in my 54 corner and did the above process, the aiptasia is now gone. Some times Aiptasia can be an indication of a different tank problem, namely dissolved organics. When was the last time you did a serious full spectrum water test? (pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Alkalinity, Phosphate, etc...) That being said... Aiptasia are very effective at pulling nutrients from the water and are even used in filtration systems similar to an algae scrubber... Best of luck... Russ PS. Make sure you get the right shrimp... http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/aiptasia/aippepshrpf aqs.htm > > For a 120 gallon tank how many Peppermint shrimp would I need?I would also be interested in an answer to this question, just in case. I think > I don't have any aiptasia yet, but I've had to deal with it in the past and > don't want to use a butterfly again. > > George Patterson > All successes in conservation are temporary. All defeats are permanent. >Now my question, how can I finally get rid of them for good? Is there >any other type of solution or way of using Joe's Juice. I have heard [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >Percula clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a sailfin tang, and a Yellow Tang. >Thanks for any help. Peppermints have always worked for me, but these are way more fun. http://s56.photobucket.com/albums/g167/kr-yppy/Aeolidiella_stephanieae/ I am anxiously awaiting my first hatching of Aeolidiella stephanieae AKA Bergia nudis. My original four babies (which were sold to me way too small) have eaten over 40 medium aptasias all ready and are rapidly consuming all I have. I had to beg for a giant bag from a keys diver/collector I know already. :) I have noticed they aren't growing back where I have torn them up in my big tanks either and if you are real rough with them they die! I have been cutting them up in a ten gallon to attempt to keep ahead of the nudis, but I am not hopeful. I'm sure I will need to go into the cold December ocean and hand collect Aptasias!! I don't have any action photos yet as I've never caught them actually eating but this site does. http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-01/ac/feature/index.php I have action photos now! Highlights include a small one grabbed by an aptasia and some nudi sex. :) http://s56.photobucket.com/albums/g167/kr-yppy/Aeolidiella_stephanieae/aptasiata kedown/ |
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