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Post by beklee21 on Feb 23, 2013 12:37:01 GMT -5
I apparently picked up a piece of live rock with aptasia on it. I now have about 20 small anemones and 1 really large one. I know they can hurt my fish and ruin some of my corals. What is the best way to get rid of them? I have heard of nudibranch, peppermint shrimp and elegance coral. Has anyone had any luck with these methods?  |
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Post by Cowdogz on Feb 23, 2013 12:40:12 GMT -5
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Post by ryansweatt2004 on Feb 23, 2013 13:12:36 GMT -5
Manually remove them with tweezers, I prefer to take bone cutters and cut the rock underneath them. I also drill them out with a screw driver and siphon out the bits.
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Post by jess on Feb 23, 2013 15:25:34 GMT -5
I have a few to get rid of myself, hard that aptasia x works well
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Post by ryansweatt2004 on Feb 23, 2013 15:55:56 GMT -5
I used aptasia x all the time to treat the aptasia infestation when I worked at aquacorals. I would literally cover each aptasia in the stuff but the aptasia just seem suck into a hole or crevice only to multiply and come back even stronger. I've heard all the claims that lemonpeel angels and peppermint shrimp will eat them but Ive yet to witness this claim first hand. Manual removal has been the only sure fire way to remove them that Ive seen.
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Post by jess on Feb 23, 2013 16:56:55 GMT -5
I did have a lemon peel that was eating the small ones, but wouldn't tackle the large ones, which are quite large, and he was not full grown either. I've never had luck with peps taking care of them. I thought about buying a nudi to pass amongst us, but someone would have to maybe farm a small tank for when none of us have any for him to eat.
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Post by scoobnoob on Feb 23, 2013 18:58:03 GMT -5
I had it really bad in my tank, I added a copper banded butterfly he devoured all of it in 3 weeks (there were over 100) then I sold him at a loss to a bigger tank..everyone was happy. I've had a peppermint eat them too, however you can't add food or the peppermint won't eat them so they are not effective in established systems with fish. I've used aptasia x but they always seem to come back after a while, maybe I'll try Joes juice sometime. You can also get berghia nudi's but they cost a small fortune and die after it's all gone..these would be great to pass around but are hard to find once added to your tank.
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Post by Cowdogz on Feb 23, 2013 19:11:16 GMT -5
If you are already using kalkwasser, you can just mix up a thick slurry of it and douse the aiptaisia with that. Joe's Juices come with a syringe. You have to be really sneaky, but if you hit the thing right in the face it will just melt.
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NateG
Full Member
Posts: 222
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Post by NateG on Feb 26, 2013 21:48:20 GMT -5
+1 on the aptasia X. I think the trick to using any of these products is their application. You can't simply use a turkey baster and cover them with the stuff. You are essentially trying to feed the stuff to them. So you need to be very precise about putting a small amount of the X right into the mouth of the aptasia. You will hopefully see a white line appear in the stalk of the anemone. If you do-it will die. The smaller ones are harder to get at this way and peppermints will have a much easier time getting at the small ones. Therefore, a few peppermints and treating with aptasia X every 2-4 days is a pretty solid plan.
But like Ryan was saying, if you can physically remove them off a rock with some bone cutters. Go for it.
And try not to use too much of any of these calcium water treatments all in one sitting as they will raise your params
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Post by gotareef on Feb 27, 2013 8:25:41 GMT -5
aptasia x does not work!! they close up for a few hrs but thats about it and I put the stuff in their body threw the mouth
the aiptsia I have just grow when I tried to use the stuff the only good thing about it is it will seal their mouth shut so you can remove them without them spitting their spores all threw the tank
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Post by ryansweatt2004 on Feb 27, 2013 9:11:35 GMT -5
That's exactly what Ive experienced with aptasia x. Waste of money if you ask me!
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Post by beklee21 on Feb 27, 2013 10:33:12 GMT -5
Thanks everyone. I picked up two peppermint shrimp, but they just seem to hide under the rock. I tried plucking the aptasia out with tweezers but they just shrink back into the rock. I quess I will try the aptasia X to see if it helps at all.
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Post by gotareef on Feb 27, 2013 11:08:43 GMT -5
if you are ever in the area i will give you the bottle of X I have
to remove aiptasia use an air line to siphon them out of the rock. some times they need to need some persuasion but so dont just reach in and try to get them they will drop tentacles, release spores.... then you will have a bunch to deal with
the best way I have found to remove them is by covering them with a small rock, they will move to the small rock and you can take it out of the tank
with pep shrimp you need to get the right kind. there are 2 kinds and only one will eat aiptsia
you need lysmata wurdemman !! the lysmata californica wont touch them
I have found the same to be true about cleaner shrimp there are 2 kinds one kind loves to eat ich...... and one dosnt
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Post by ryansweatt2004 on Feb 27, 2013 11:43:06 GMT -5
When they suck into a rock I just take a flat screw driver and drill the aptasia right out of the hole and suck up the bits with a hose or turkey baster. Works every time for me.
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Post by beklee21 on Mar 11, 2013 17:58:27 GMT -5
Thanks for all the great advice. I bought some Aptasia X at Deep Sea Creations. While I was there talking with Dennis. He asked if I had other corals on the piece of live rock infested with aptasia. Lucky me ...I did not. His very easy solution- Boil it. I did and it worked great. I felt horrible killing them, but my fish come first:) The rock turned bright green, but it is slowing going back to normal and now I will have plenty of room for other corals.
The aptasia X did work well on the few other stragglers throughout the tank!
Thanks Dennis!
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