Can you identify this anemone?

[kdrafahl]

I found this hitchhiker on my live rock and can't tell what type of anemone it is. This one does not seem to have a tall stalk (unless it's hidden in the hole). It has purple colored tips which doesn't show up well in the picture. Is it an aiptasia or something else? Thanks for your help!

 

[xrayjeeper83]

Im going with aiptasia

 

[Cliff519]

Looks like aiptasia to me as well

 

[ct_vol]

Aiptasia for the win!

 

[justthewife]

I had one of those once and ended up just removing the whole rock to be safe because though I was told it was aptasia, it didn't respond to any aptasia ridding concoctions or methods of removal. I could not kill the thing. Still don't know what it was.

 

[radiata]

Kill it immediately while it is still solitary! You'll be sorry if you don't, because you'll be quite surprised at the reproductive capabilities of Aiptasia. Your cheapest fix is a large wad of well chewed Bazooka Bubble Gum. Paste and press it down on the thing and let it stay in place for a week. You want to deprive it of an oxygenated water supply. Repeat if it pops out of another hole in your rock - Aiptasia aren't stupid, and frequently have an escape route contingency all planned out. Good Luck!

 

[kdrafahl]

Thanks for your help. I had really hoped it was something, anything, other than Aiptasia. I tried shooting lemon juice at it last night and thought I'd killed it for sure. It was back this morning, bigger than ever. I don't want to remove my rock because there are other critters on there as well. Does anyone suggest aiptasiaX? I worried a little about adding chemicals to my tank.

 

[Nina51]

i've used aiptasiax several times and it works like a charm. you have to be sure to get it right in the center, preferably when the aiptasia is open.

 

[cichlid nutz]

Nina? Who let you in here?

Several methods including scalding hot RO water, thick kalkwasser and lemon juice that won't harm anything in the tank.
Peppermint shrimp will also eat them but only about 50% of the time.

 

[spieszak]

aiptasiax is fine, kalk paste works well for me too. After you hit them with either, wait a few minutes and then see if you can siphon them out. Even if it doesn't kill them, it does tend to stun them to where they lose their grip on the rock. Just don't break them into pieces when doing so. I've used airline hose before (trying to not to pull too much water out of the tank between water changes). When you do so, sometimes they will get stuck on the hose and stop the siphon. If you then lift it up slowly, you can drop the end in your net, and then just flush them. They can regenerate from almost nothing, so if you siphon after "the kill" it can help them from coming back.