On the subject of Aiptasia! Help for a fellow reefkeeper

[Tony Quinn]

A fellow marine keeper has called me regarding an aiptasia problem he has in his tank. On seeing it I was both astounded at the size of some of them and the plague proportions they had reached. Before seeing the tank I had over the phone informed him that I'd always had a Copperband and therefore no problems with these monsters. Given the magnitude of the problem could anybody suggest what I could do to help him. His water parameters are fine, regular changes are made and the fish are all in good health as are the corals. I think he originally bought the live rock a couple of years ago and it was infested and no action was taken. He is not on the net so I thought I'd ask you guys as its a bit too big for me!

 

[Anonymous]

Maybe you could lend him your Copperband...

Peppermint shrimp keep them under control in my tank, although they refuse to eat the final 3-4 of them. I have 2 shrimp in a 120. Lots of aiptasia in the sump, but their numbers don't grow in the display tank where the shrimp are.

HTH

 

[danmhippo]

For a real bad infestation, copperband may be the quickest for their appetite. Just make sure you don't feed the tank for a while.

 

[Palmetto]

A healthy Copperband will probably take care of even the biggest ones, once they get a taste for Aiptasia.

They can take awhile to understand that it is food, but once they taste them it is all over!

 

[Tony Quinn]

I am usually reluctant to ask somebody to buy a Copperband as they are somewhat delicate and I had mine in a 300g with 200lb + of mature live rock. He has an 80g and a long nose butterfly in there already, the CB and the LN won't go! Peppermint shrimps would also be a problem as there are triggers in there!

Could he remove the rock and somehow destroy the aiptasia that way?, meanwhile put the fish elsewhere?

 

[Palmetto]

He needs to get a CB and get rid of the LN if he has to in order to eliminate the problem. Aiptasia infestations must be corrected at all costs.

This would be a lot better than removing all the live rock- also tiny pieces of Aips get in the sand and pop up later.

 

[Tony Quinn]

Guess who will get the LN then? If there is no other way I guess....

 

[big o]

berghia verrucicornis (aiptasia-eating nudibranch) good luck finding one

 

[Tony Quinn]

Thanks for that. I have today ordered him a big fat Copperband to indulge in a feast of Aiptasia, some of which are over 2" in diameter!!!! I must admit I viewed the tank at night to see the full extent of the problem and they looked quite beautiful in the subdued light!

 

[Palmetto]

berghia verrucicornis (aiptasia-eating nudibranch) good luck finding one

You might find one online just fine. The problem is finding one after you put it in the tank. I have never seen them do anything but disappear.

Maybe they taste good?

 

[Tony Quinn]

Not only that! nudibranches are what nudibranches do!! they eat other more desirable inverts surely unless this one is on an aiptasia only diet. My other problem is that I'm in the United Kingdom and cannot benefit like you guys from massive choices of outlets and first class deliveries, let alone on line!

 

[Len]

NaOH works better then anything at killing Aiptasia AND unwanted shrooms. I swear it. Refer to the following for more details.
http://www.reefscapes.net/articles/bree ... ntrol.html

Please be careful around NaOH. It can burn a whole through your skin with ease. I always wear Nitrile gloves when handling the stuff (and since I wear glasses, I don't use goggles but do recommend them).

 

[Palmetto]

8O

Geez, Leonard- that method scares me more than the Aiptasia!!

I heard pouring bleach into your tank will kill them too.

(um, just in case there is any remote possibility that someone would think I was serious- do NOT pour bleach into your tank! - it clouds the water.)

 

[Len]

Hey, if nothing else works, this is a good place to turn The beauty of NaOH is it's completely reef safe. The problem with it is it isn't human safe Use the stuff with extreme caution and make sure it's stored away securely.

 

[Palmetto]

Hey, I am seriously thinking about the baby mushrooms near my SPS....

:twisted:

 

[Tony Quinn]

Hey guys! I'm his friend, injecting sodium hydroxide in his tank is kinda serious if something goes wrong, I've printed off the pages and will discuss it. The butterfly fish route will be tried first I think though!

 

[ChrisRD]

Tony:

I just boil a kalk mix in the microwave and use a gardening-type syringe to squirt it over the Aptasia from about an 1" away (same application method mentioned in the article Leonard posted). This method has worked for me every time so far, on the first treatment.

 

[Len]

Just a disclaimer (since NaOH and CaOH can seriously burn someone): I am not liable for any damages incurred using this method. Please use at your discretion and with all saftey precautions accounted for (gloves, goggles, storage issues, etc.). I recommend you exhaust the other common methods first.

 

[Anonymous]

won't help much in the midst of a plague, but i found that using salt creep off the inside of the tank kills them pretty well.

just scrape it off and lay it on them, they die.


my two cents.

 

[danmhippo]

I never had luck with injection method, But if NaCl is dangerous, How about straight vinegar?