Millepora suffering

TripleToe

TripleToe

New member
Any tips on why a millepora might close up and start to go pale when the rest of my sps are doing good? I've got two milles (red arrows in pic) that have no polyp extension and look like they might be dying. They are mounted high under ecotech radions. Meanwhile all my other stylos and acros are just fine and have good polyp extension and color. I have another mille nearby which has good PE but is developing a concerning white spot (blue arrow). I've got Calcium:440, dkh 9.6, salinity 1.025, temp 82.6F, very low phosphates/nitrates. Anyone else seen this type of situation or have any suggestions?

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1406168387.868893.jpg
 
Aefw would be the first thought in my mind. Baste and see if you see them fly off.
 
I don't have much experience with flatworms, but I pulled out one of the two frag's in question and dipped it in Revive (like I do when I bring them home) I didn't see any obvious flat white worms, but I did see some orange specs floating around of water. (See teaspoon in pic) Are these also what type of flatworm? Or do aefw look orange too?
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1406172295.598234.jpg
 

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That looks ominous. Can't confirm 100%, but it looks like one to me.

And fwiw, revive doesn't typically do much to aefw.
 
I've ordered some Flatworm Exit and Flatworm Stop. I'm gonna search the forums for other aefw solutions but let me know if you have any other suggestions....
 
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Those will do nothing if that is an aefw.

Look into doing a dip in Bayer - I just completed a 60 day dip a few weeks ago to rid myself of them. QT was the key
 
looks like flatworm to me...
flatworm exit should help, but will kill off snails and crabs.
turn off your skimmer, be prepared to change lots of water afterwards, and then you will want to run some carbon for a bit to try and catch any remaining toxins that are in the water.
 
I battled AEFW a few years ago.

If the white spots on the corals appear at the base of the colony or where two branches meet then it's likely an AEFW infestation. It has been my experience that Revive will kill AEFW. I used it as a dip, dosed 1.5x the recommended amount and each dip lasted 30 minutes. The worms came off almost immediately and were a light orange, rust color. They're much larger than the common flatworms you may be used to. Flatworm Exit will have no affect if they're indeed AEFW.

Another thing to consider is to clip the corals from their bases. The AEFW lay their eggs on recently dead coral skeleton. By clipping the base off you will ensure that you aren't re-introducing eggs to the system.
 
Yeah, that's what my milles looked like when they got infested. The pic is unclear. The larger flatworms can have a tan color to them. I'm colorblind, so maybe they are orange:lol:
 
TripleToe said:
I don't have much experience with flatworms, but I pulled out one of the two frag's in question and dipped it in Revive (like I do when I bring them home) I didn't see any obvious flat white worms, but I did see some orange specs floating around of water. (See teaspoon in pic) Are these also what type of flatworm? Or do aefw look orange too?
View attachment 285321
Click to expand...


I know that it's going to seem weird that I say this when everyone else says they can't confirm, but that reddish orange thing is a flatworm!!! I had a ridiculous outbreak about 18 months ago, I mean THOUSANDS..... Which is why I know that's a flatworm, it's singed in my brain...

the only way I killed them was by purchasing wrasses, and shutting the lights for 2-5 days... It worked for me... Don't have any way to explain, since it's been a long time, but I just remember it did it. Try a melanurus wrasse(tailspot) or 6 lines...
 
alexx2208 said:
I know that it's going to seem weird that I say this when everyone else says they can't confirm, but that reddish orange thing is a flatworm!!! I had a ridiculous outbreak about 18 months ago, I mean THOUSANDS..... Which is why I know that's a flatworm, it's singed in my brain...



the only way I killed them was by purchasing wrasses, and shutting the lights for 2-5 days... It worked for me... Don't have any way to explain, since it's been a long time, but I just remember it did it. Try a melanurus wrasse(tailspot) or 6 lines...
Click to expand...




You had red planaria. Completely different. And I'd imagine you still have them, because lights out does nothing for them. The wrasses may be keeping them in check.

Aefw are impossible to see. They blend in with whatever coral they are eating.
 
flamron said:
You had red planaria. Completely different. And I'd imagine you still have them, because lights out does nothing for them. The wrasses may be keeping them in check.

Aefw are impossible to see. They blend in with whatever coral they are eating.
Click to expand...

Agreed, also it looks like the second pic from the OP is "red planaria" and not an AEFW.
 
It's hard to tell without a closer pic. I don't see a split tail, so it could be aefw.
 
flamron said:
That looks ominous. Can't confirm 100%, but it looks like one to me.

And fwiw, revive doesn't typically do much to aefw.
Click to expand...

Revive worked great for dipping my corals for aefw. It might not kill them instantly but surely worked well for me. There could be better dips out there for certain situations but it's really about what your used to working with and what your dipping.

OP
It does look like it could be an acro eating flatworms because I do not see the forked tail either. Also normally flatworms will be everywhere in your tank at that size. Either way, dip all your acros and inspect closely. Research aefw and any other sps pest for that matter. Better to do it and be prepared than get them and not realize it's them til your completley infested.
Research and don't listen to random "experiences" from people for help. If you do, you get too much false information from the wrong people. It happens in almost every aefw thread and is hard for me to read. It seems like people always try and help in these threads but there is always someone suggesting the wrong thing.
Good luck, looks like you only have a few frags so if it's aefw then it will be easy as pie to get rid of! That is if it's aefw.
 
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