Acro Eating Flatworms...what do they look like?

[BRISK495]

How can you tell if you have acro eating flatworms? I have a couple corals where there is a spot where it looks like it is a little bleached, and possibly reddish area there...there looks like there is a string and littl buble at the end....I have a mille that is has blotches, areas that are STNing. The last coral I got was from MACNa, I hope it wasnt my tanks worse enemy

 

[five.five-six]

here, I stole this from another thread

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=756327&perpage=25&pagenumber=1

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6628585#post6628585 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by weatherson
OK... Here's some photos I took of the bastards I found in my tank...

First, here's a large one shot in a white bowl;

And another of the same guy on the move and stretched out a bit;

A shot of some eggs;

And finally, a closer shot which shows in better detail the eggs as well as some newly hatched worms (the little white blotches) as well as a couple, more mature hatchlings towards the bottom of the shot. These appear to have darker "head".

I have done two red bug treatments, one per week, and will be doing the last tomorrow. At the same time, I did FWE treatments but did these a couple hours before the red bug. The first FWE treatment was at the recommended dosage. The second, I did almost twice the recommended dosage and as soon as I get more FWE (hopefully, this week), I plan to do a three times the recommended dosage. There are others who have done so at this level with no adverse effects. The first two, along with the red bug treatment, had seemingly caused no issues other than the typical cyannobacteria bloom following the treatment. I've recently pulled out for inspection a couple of corals that had previously had flat worms on them. I found no eggs of any evidence of flat worms. I did this by vigorously shaking the corals in a large bowl of tank water and let the corals dry as much to enable visual clues of their presence. Again, I've yet to find any since the two previous treatments but still plan to do the third, 3X dosage treatment. I'll update here after.

Joseph

 

[BRISK495]

thanks, how did your Flat worm Exit treatment go? I was looking to try betadine pssibly, what worked best for you? I would like to treat the tank without removing if possible...thanks!

 

[Philwd]

pic of the flatworm leaving something at the bottom of the colony. What can that be?...

hundreds of eggs

This was a Tyree Purple Unknown colony. Was...

 

[nasotang]

Philwd- Is the adult flatworm in your pictures at the top left or the black specks near the eggs.

 

[Philwd]

top left brown oval spot.

 

[BRISK495]

great pics, do you have any far shots?

 

[Philwd]

This is the Garf Bonsai I first found them on. You can clearly see bite marks. From 9' away best I can describe it is every day it looked a little more splotchy. Not STN. Mottled may be a better word.

From more than a foot or so away it is extremely difficult to tell. Bite marks are typically underneath in shaded areas or branch crevasses. The purple uknown above. You would think I could see those eggs. The colony was about 2/3 back from the front and I had no clue till I took every coral out and inspected.

 

[BRISK495]

wow, excellent photo....i am slowly convincing myself that I do not have AEFW's...When you said it does not look like STN, that was helpful. The coral it is affecting is a yellow mille, which has always been bullet proof. A tort was having a a few issues as well. These are my two favoite corals. I have a acropora yongei that is unaffected, a. nana unaffected, a larger humilus unaffected. I have read that the AEFW take particular like to A. Nana and not millepora as much. I guess this is good news for me, but bad news that I have to find out why my Mille is bleaching. I would take pic but my camera isnot working at the moment. I am still gong to keep searching though...I plan to quarenteen in the furture all corals in a seperate tank before going into a display...I knew I should have listened to Calfo!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10986826#post10986826 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Philwd
This is the Garf Bonsai I first found them on. You can clearly see bite marks. From 9' away best I can describe it is every day it looked a little more splotchy. Not STN. Mottled may be a better word.

From more than a foot or so away it is extremely difficult to tell. Bite marks are typically underneath in shaded areas or branch crevasses. The purple uknown above. You would think I could see those eggs. The colony was about 2/3 back from the front and I had no clue till I took every coral out and inspected.

 

[salmonslayer]

Good luck with that coral. Of all the corals they should attack. Save that baby.

 

[Sullivmw]

Brisk495-

My Mille's have always been the first to get them, like a giant AEFW magnet. Best advice would be to get something like TMPCC or equivalent and dip that coral for 10+ minutes. Check the bucket during this time to see if anything resembles a flatworm floating\swimming around.

Being that your Mille is bullet proof, and everything else seems healthy, this is were I would start. If parms were off, I would say your tort would exhibit signs before your milles.

 

[Zooguy]

Flat worn killer

Flat worn killer

I had one like in the first picture. It really could move along and I didnt know what it was so I let it stay. The next day I found my small queen conch on it, that conch loves to eat my snails and now is back in the ocean. But before it got the boot it did in the flat worm which was just a little slower than the conch.

 

[bvaughn7]

pic of the flatworm leaving something at the bottom of the colony. What can that be?...

hundreds of eggs

This was a Tyree Purple Unknown colony. Was...

What are the darker spots on near the eggs?

 

[Scorpius]

9 yr old thread revival. I was in college back then. :lol: