AEFW Question

[dustinc]

I have a coral that has not been doing very well since I received it about a month ago. I've not been able to tell what was going on until last night when I discover a few large flatworms on the coral. I immediately pulled it out and dipped it in CoralRX. After dipping I returned it to the tank and pulled out 3 other corals to dip as well from other areas of the tank. I could not find bite marks or any AEFW fall off during the baste and dip. Is it possible that my problem was limited to that 1 coral? Are there any other signs or precautions I should look out for or take. I really don't want this to explode but every other coral in the tank has great Polyp extension and color and are growing and encrusting well. Thnk you for helping.

Dustin

 

[HV1990]

If possible I would pull out the infected coral and place in a QT. Keep watching for a few weeks. If there is one adult you may have eggs on the coral.

 

[tektite]

CoralRx isn't the best dip to get them off, I wouldn't rely on it to be an indicator of whether or not the corals have AEFW. If you've had a coral with AEFW on it in the tank for a month, they've had plenty of time to migrate to other corals, especially if any eggs hatched. Keep in mind every egg has multiple larvae, usually 3-4 from my observations. AEFW populations can explode quickly.

 

[dowtish]

It is possible that the one frag had it....because anything is possible.

But I would get a magnifying glass and start inspecting all your acros very well. I would also look into using Bayer insecticide for dipping them. It is an AEFW killer and is very gentle on the coral.


http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2263491&highlight=bayer+aefw+

 

[dustinc]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I have inspected very closely and don't notice any other signs, but I'm still nervous because of how they repopulate. I would like to keep the tank going as is without removing every acro if possible but can setup a QT for everything if that's the only way to rid the tank. I couldn't find any eggs on the coral it was on. I guess a better question would be is it likely that many corals are infected or is it more likely that many corals are infected since that coral has been in the tank for a month? Also, I just ordered revive for a dip as well. I've read good things about it.

Will corals still show great PE and color if AEFW are present? Thanks again for the insight

 

[tektite]

It is extremely likely that other corals are infected.

Revive won't do much at all for AEFW, get some Bayer advanced insecticide.

The infected coral was in the tank for a month, if it were my tank I would immediately conclude that other corals are infected too.

Some corals are easy to see flatworms on, others I've dipped that looked perfectly fine (a milli for one with great PE and color) and had tons of flatworms come off. Visual inspection is not a good indicator. Many corals will continue to look OK despite having some flatworms on them, only starting to show signs/tissue recession after they're totally infested.

 

[dowtish]

+1 to all of this^^^^

 

[dustinc]

Thanks guy. I just read through your thread dowtish and it was very informative. For the QT, I have access to a 38 gallon nuvo aquarium but that is all. Will this be sufficient if I just fill it with my DT water and get a Vortech on it with some T5 lighting? How long will it need to run with DT water before moving my acros over to it? I guess I will cut everything out and dip all to be safe.

 

[dowtish]

Thanks guy. I just read through your thread dowtish and it was very informative. For the QT, I have access to a 38 gallon nuvo aquarium but that is all. Will this be sufficient if I just fill it with my DT water and get a Vortech on it with some T5 lighting? How long will it need to run with DT water before moving my acros over to it? I guess I will cut everything out and dip all to be safe.

As long as you can maintain regular water changes and keep the parameters stable that tank will be fine. I didnt think that my QT would require dosing 2 part, but it did. The WC's just couldnt keep up with the demand. I'm not sure how many acros you have or how big, but get ready to make lots of new water and test quite a bit. All the while dipping every 7 days for at least 9 weeks.