Aiptasia anyone?

[Sanlynn]

Hi, as I am looking over my notes from the tank I kept 3 years ago in NY I am beginning to remember some of the challenges I faced. One of the most difficult was when my tank became overrun with aiptasia. I tried every solution in the book and made no headway. But, then, it was time to break down the tank and move so I suppose this is an opportunity to start again aiptasia-free.

I'm wondering if anyone in the Montgomery area has experienced a problem with these pervasive anemones hitchhiking on the coral or live rock they've bought locally?

It's been a while since I've seen them in person, but pretty sure I identified some in a tank I saw in a LFS today. And know for sure I saw some in a different LFS a couple years ago down here too.

Two additional questions/comments
1)A service guy in NY said that some of his customers thought aiptasia was fine - just another aquarium life form. Anyone agree with that statement?
2) Does anyone know if aiptasia can remain dormant on what was live rock 3 years ago (kept dry in rubbermaid garbage bins)?

Sanlynn

 

[wpecoul]

Yes, there are often a few aiptasia, majano or tulip anemones on live rock around here. There are better methods to control them than in the past though, like Aiptasia X. As long as they aren't too large, peppermint shrimp are good for a natural control, though you have to watch them with LPS sometimes.

I don't agree that they are just another part of marine life and therefore something to tolerate in our tanks. Cone snails are another type of marine life and they'll kill you if you aren't careful, but that doesn't mean I have to leave one in my tank.

The good news is that your rock should be fine. The only thing it might cause you a problem with is nutrients it absorbed in the past - they could leach out once you put the rock back in a tank.

 

[hardimanm]

+1 on Aiptasia X. It works wonders and it is so easy to use.

As for them staying dormant....i think once they dry out they are dead...

 

[jasontammy]

If you can keep them in a sump they can be a benifit.We all know they dont stay there but the are very good filter feeders.I read an article where a guy grows them in his algea scrubber for filtering.I am not willing to give that a try.LOL

 

[chipsie777]

After trying hot water and a syringe, I bought 5 peppermint shrimp for my 180 (not sure all 5 survived, but I see at least 2 or 3 still).
It took maybe 4 to 6 weeks for the shrimp to get on top of it, and I have not had any since then.

 

[walkerbrody]

There is a thread on here for a "Mojo Zapper". Its easy to build using a 12-24v dc power source and a couple cheap items. I built one for a friend, it works great.

 

[gflat65]

If you can find them, Berghia verrucicornis only eat Aiptasia. They may take a little while, but they will not stop until they get them all (then they die, unfortunately-no food source). The Aips can come back once the nudis die off (all it takes is a tiny piece). These won't work on majano's or tulips, though.

I've had repeatable luck with peppermint shrimp, too. They work best with light or no feeding in the tank. There are some disadvantages, but they've not stopped me away from pepps. They will eventually eat every anemone like coral in you tank if you go long enough without feeding.

 

[Sanlynn]

When my NY tank was overrun with Aiptasia I tried syringes with lemon juice, with Aiptasia Away, I think something called Joe's Juice (not sure I'm remembering this correctly) and while it was horrifyingly satisfying to see them curl up and die, they had the last laugh. As another poster in a youtube thread noticed using Aiptasia A, the big ones would sort of explode, sending fragments all over the tank to establish new baby aiptasias. At least, that's what it seemed like.

So, I bought 3 - 5 peppermint shrimp. Maybe they ate the very small ones and I didn't notice, but certainly there was no noticeable improvement to the tank.

I was researching the nudis but hesitated buying knowing they would die for sure if they were successful in eating the aiptasia.

Yesterday I revisited the large LFS here in Montgomery that I first visited about 2 1/2 years ago. A very nice guy there said they were having some success with filefish eating aiptasia. And one of the 125g tanks had some beautiful corals the filefish wasn't (yet) interested in. Other posters elsewhere seem to have mixed results.

I'm still wondering how to avoid introducing these critters into my tank to begin with. Seems like an impossible dream. Comments, anyone?
Sanlynn

 

[gflat65]

It's difficult to ensure you are not introducing them into your tank because of size and rock crevices. Looking rock over thoroughly before buying can help, but no guarantees. As Will mentioned, though, Aips are generally present because of higher levels of nutrients in the tank. Getting nutrients down can help. However, some rock is so loaded with nutrients that it continuously leaches back into the water column. Generally, this is seen with old live rock and sand beds (captive rock may see water turnover, but gets only negligible water replacement when compared to sea water, so it loads up over time).

Some people cook their rock for that reason. I've got some that needs to be cooked (soon, if I can kill the lazy bug). As I understand it, cooking is basically putting the rock in good cycled salt water with a cover to prevent light from getting in, circulation and skimming, with frequent water changes. The theory is that with no light and clean water, bacteria and algaes in the rock devour the nutrients when there is nothing else to feast on. I think the time frame is generally around 6 months, but is more dependent on actual parameters and PO4, etc.

 

[LovenBama]

I bought one of the filefish from the lfs in Montgomery and he does a bang-up job on the aptasia ...BUT when it was all gone(including the majano), he did begin to eat away at my zoas and zenia....wished he would eat palys...anyways, I have other tanks to move him to when he rids the DT of the pest but within a month I start seeing a few come back in crevices that I thought he had eaten them from and it's a pain trying to catch him and everything, this last trip into the DT he really made havick on several of my nicer zoas and they are struggling to come back this go around...with that being said, he will not be moving again. They are very pretty fish to sit and watch all the bristles waving on their bodies, but like most other things, they have good and bad sides to getting them just for aptaisa control.

 

[doorlady]

If you can find them, Berghia verrucicornis only eat Aiptasia. They may take a little while, but they will not stop until they get them all (then they die, unfortunately-no food source). The Aips can come back once the nudis die off (all it takes is a tiny piece). These won't work on majano's or tulips, though.

I've had repeatable luck with peppermint shrimp, too. They work best with light or no feeding in the tank. There are some disadvantages, but they've not stopped me away from pepps. They will eventually eat every anemone like coral in you tank if you go long enough without feeding.

Agreed, Berghia do a fine job, but once they have eaten them all and you get rid of them 6 months later the Aips come back. We are putting new Berghia in tonight as I am posting. Last time I traded a lot of the offspring from my Berghia, this time I am going to try and put some in the over flows and sumps, I think this is where they came back from.

 

[LovenBama]

I'm thinking there is no real I mean 100% way to get rid of the aptaisa...one day they'll "be back".....my 29g has been up and running for almost a year with no apts until just recent....and nothing has been added to the tank other than 2 RBTA in the last say about 7 or 8 months maybe, so I have no idea as to where they came from

 

[Sanlynn]

Does anyone have a source that they feel is more likely to be aiptasia free? I suppose you can buy fish and be pretty certain they aren't floating in the water with the fish. But I think they can be hiding on any coral fragment so I'd probably not buy those from LFS that has obvious aiptasia problems. What about online?

 

[Paul B]

There is a thread on here for a "Mojo Zapper". Its easy to build using a 12-24v dc power source and a couple cheap items. I built one for a friend, it works great.

Here is a video of it

 

[wpecoul]

Wow. That looks pretty cool, but I've never had that much trouble getting rid of majanos by hand. Do aiptasia stick around long enough to take more than one hit? Or is one hit all it takes? Whenever I've started to mess with an aiptasia before, it pretty much disappears (shrinks to nothing, that is) in a flash.

 

[Paul B]

No, one hit is all it takes.

 

[Sanlynn]

Paul B, unfortunately I could not find a thread for "Mojo Zapper." Could you provide any more details on it - or a link to the thread. Many thanks.
Sanlynn

p.s. both my husband and I were raised on Long Island, (Westbury and Plainview) notice you're there. Are you finding good LFS?

 

[Paul B]

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1808040&highlight=mojanos

Sanlynn, I go to a number of stores all over the place and don't really have a favorite.
There is one right around the corner, Pets of New Hyde Park, that I used to buy supplies but they are going out of business this week. Now I usually get livestock in The Pet Barn in Franklin Square only because I know the owner.
Fish Town in Flushing has the largest stock and the most unusual animals because he imports them himself although I am not crazy about the staff.

 

[6Speed]

All you have to do is mix up some calc water really strong and put it in a syringe. If I remember correctly, it's the same thing as joes juice. I've used it successfully many times.