Copperband and aiptasia ?

[Nanighan]

Hi all, I just got a quick question. I just bought a healthy copperband, and was hoping he goes after some of the aiptasia in my tank. So far he has eaten some of my mini feather dusters but no aiptasia. My question is will they eventually learn to eat aiptasia after a while, or is it simply either the one you got wont or will eat aiptasia?

 

[E Rosewater]

Had mine for about three months. Went to town on feather dusters, never touched aiptasia, then went from seamingly healthy to dead in a day.

 

[Donkeykong]

Flip of a coin, some mow thru them others never take a second look.

 

[hobbby3]

Each fish is there own boss and I've tried two. Like E Rosewater mine ate up all the featherdusters and perished within a few weeks.

If you do decide to get a CBB please make sure it will eat before you buy and don't just take the LFS word for it.

 

[Nanighan]

Thanks for all the info, but I already bought the fish. It is very active and ate mysis at the LFS. I need it to eat aiptasia though, so far no luck. Still a cool fish and I hope it does well in my tank. It is about 2.5 to 3 inches.
Does anyone have one that didn't eat aiptasia at first but later got the taste for them?

 

[Rabidgoose]

Mine took a couple months before it started eating aptasia. A varied diet is more critical to their long term care IMO. Mine ate ova and cyclopeeze almost from the start, it still won't touch mysis. Some use live blackworms with success and still others will put half of a clam (in the shell) in the tank occasionally.
When I first saw him eating aptasia it was during feeding and some ova and/or cyclopeeze had been captured by an aptasia. He would go for the food in the aptasia and eventually started eating the aptasia without the feeding stimulus. Their is no guarantee he will eat aptasia tho. Good luck

HTH.....chuck

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

I went through 5 CBB before I got one to eat frozen mysis and survive in my tank. And this survivor didn't care to eat any of the aiptasia… that is until I used aiptasia x. once I hit them with aiptasia x the CBB started eating the remains of the pesky vermin.

Although I have never seen him eat any aiptasia that wasn't treated with aiptasia x, I would have to assume that he does because 6 months after treating the easily accessible aiptasia there aren't any in my main display.

I don't know if there's something being released from the aiptasia to attract the CBB but he seemed to tear them up. Maybe this is the way to remind him that these are food.

By the way 5th time is a charm for me because I have had this guy for about a year now and seems to be loving life.

 

[E Rosewater]

Mine ate mysis when I picked him up. Always ate great, he was nice and fat to the day he died. They are a fish that just probably shouldn't be kept.

 

[CoppBandbuttfly]

CBB is my favorite fish, that's why my avatar is CBB. I have tried 3 to 4 of them and the most recent one died in about a month. Same to what most of you all said, was healthy eating and all of a sudden died the next day for no good reason. I will keep trying and I am ready for the next one.

 

[E Rosewater]

It was my favorite fish. But I feel with my experience and others that they are just not cut out for a captive diet. I won't continue to kill them, one was enough.

 

[Paul B]

They are also my favorite fish and I have been keeping them since the 70s. But as was said, they don't all eat aiptasia and they have a definate personality and different fish will prefer different foods. Some will eat anything and others will only eat live worms. If you want to see if one eats aiptasia, see if he eats it in the store which may not be easy.

 

[Nanighan]

Yippee it eats aiptasia!!! Thats the good news...Bad news is, it will only go after the small ones. No worries though I only have about 10 or so. Kalk paste here I come. Thanks for all the replies.

Paul yours look awesome!
Quick vid for you folks. Not the greatest but everyone likes vids right? Watch in HD helps a little and tank is not that blue or even disco ball like.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxBaJgVjseE

 

[Paul B]

Nice video. Looks like you got a lively one there.
Here is a video of mine about a year ago with the pumps off. The picture gets out of focus if I turn the pumps on.

 

[Nanighan]

Nice video as well, plenty of coral in there. And to think they almost refuse to sell me the copperband saying it will eat coral, but every video I see has hard, soft, lps, and sps. I personally dont mind as I think mine are big enough, and copperbands are not known for eating sps.