Monti Cap Nudi's

[chris4693]

I am having a small problem with Monti Cap Nudi's, or are they just eating my Caps for now? Will they start moving to my Digi's?

Anyone had this problem and how did you get rid of them?

I am hoping Travis might chime in here since he has more time to look up this type stuff.

Tomorrow morning I am taking a MiniJet pump with a small hose connected to the intake to suck them off of the Caps. This should help slow them down, but I need to find a way to get rid of them.

I will also be picking up a 6 Line Wrasse first of next week.

 

[lawboy888]

i had the same problem...pretty bad...i lost about 3 nice colonies of monti caps and it was ****ing me off....paul told me to put wrasses in the tank and it should help...try yellow coris or green coris, or christmas wrasse but buy then small. i put a large red coris and it was a nitemare...good luck...

if you have a colony that is too far gone..you should just throw it out. the nudi are smart and hide in your monti crevases. you cant really suck them out..just get a bunch of wrasses...i dont know if six line will help but yellow coris will. good luck

 

[captbunzo]

I was just chatting earlier today (ok, yesterday, tuesday) with Michael @ Extreme Corals about what they do to treat corals when they come in to avoid things like Monti Eating Nudibranchs. I'll call tomorrow sometime and ask and report...

 

[lawboy888]

let us know...i think it will be very helpful...i know hai had the same problem until he got some wrasse....you can tell you have it because the line of progression or dead pollyps on a monti is very symetrical...like an invasion army running over your monti...i hate the little bastards.

 

[pwhitby]

I had the problem several years ago. Some small six lines cleared it up almost overnight. The montis are so small you cant se them, but the work they do is very noticeable.

FWIW....A tank without a wrasse is like having a safe with a door undone. Small wrasses such as six lines will eat a variety of parasites, such as monti nudibranchs, flatworms etc. They are pretty fish, harmless to corals but really do a great job safeguarding the health of the corals. I place them in every tank, including my frag and quarantine tanks.

Paul.

 

[captbunzo]

Nice tip, Paul. Maybe I'll go find myself a 6-Line before I head home on Friday. What other species of wrasse do you recommend?

 

[pwhitby]

Besides six lines, eight lines, 3 lines, I would go with the yellow (banana) wrasses. The long thin body allows the easy access to coral centers. Green coris get large, so avoid those.

The Christmas or melanurus wrasse is good for acropora eating flat worms.....or so I have heard. (they are same family as the yellow coris, which isnt a coris)

 

[pwhitby]

Reefshop has six lines. Art may have (not sure). I have only seen Christmas wrasses at ART and Wet Pets.

Paul.

 

[pwhitby]

oh, and Leighanne always seems to have 6 lines in.

Remember tho....they can be jumpers.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

I am hoping Travis might chime in here since he has more time to look up this type stuff

You asked for it

I've done my fair amount of research regarding these pests since I my 75g will only have Montipora species in it. The best way is definitely adding a wrasse of sorts. Quite a few wrasses will do the trick. Many of the "Lined" and "Cryptic" and "Coris" wrasses will munch on them. Like Emerald Crabs to Bubble Algae and Peppermint Shrimp to Aiptasia, it's hit or miss. But, the chances are higher. There are also dragonets and Mandarinfish that will also munch on these, but the likelihood from them is less.

A far more stressful way, but is rather successful is dipping. Plain freshwater dip is preferred over the added stress of Lugol's Iodine Dips. Both of which are risky to the coral itself.

So, you could either add a wrasse and risk the chance loosing the colony to Nudis because the wrasse didn't eat them. Or you could do dips and risk the chance of loosing the colony due to stress. It's a tough decision. Most people actually just take out the effected pieces and throw them away. It's sad, but larger colonies tend to be too infested by the time that you notice they are being damaged.

And one last thing. Though the adults do the damage, they are of a less concern. They are easily spotted with a well trained eye and quickly manually exterminated. It's the tiny, resilient, well hidden eggs that pose a huge threat. Often they can survive dips and wrasses don't normally eat the eggs.

I'm sorry to hear of your misfortune. Like Zoanthid Eating Nudibranchs and Acropora Eating Flatworms, these guys are by far the worst pest you can have in your tank.

 

[pwhitby]

I have seen several tanks with this and a few months later, after six lines and yellows are added, all clear.

 

[Matrexz]

quote:
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I am hoping Travis might chime in here since he has more time to look up this type stuff
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You asked for it



Sure didn't see that thread in here.....interesting way of getting yourself into the thread though. Now I've see everything.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

:lmao: Check back up at the first post I promise I didn't make that up.

 

[Matrexz]

Ahh ok

 

[chris4693]

Luckly on my dinner plate size Blue Polyp Cap I have three dimes size spots. I can see the nudi's very well when the lights first come on so shouldn't be hard to suck most of them off. It will be first of next week before I can make it to Norman to get a 6 Line.

Thanks for the input.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Good Luck. You'll need it.

 

[captbunzo]

I might be able to track down a six-line in the Dallas area and bring it up to Ardmore friday evening, eh?

 

[captbunzo]

Ok, I just got off the phone with Michael from Extreme Corals.

He says that if you can pull the corals out of the tank, dealing with these nudibranchs is not that horribly difficult. You may also be able to deal with them if you can visually inspect the ENTIRETY of the coral while it is still inside the tank.

Here is his method.

First, to deal with the nudibranchs themselves. Remove the coral from the tank and visually inspect for nudis. You should be able to see them pretty easily. When you find one, blow it off the coral with a turkey baster. If you can't get one off, apply a few drops of iodine. The iodine should dissolve the nudi, but not harm the coral at all. After 10 minutes, turkey baste away the pile of iodine and dissolved nudi mush.

Next, examine the coral for eggs. The eggs may be substantially easier to see while the coral is in the water. They are slightly smaller then ocellaris clownfish eggs and are clear/white. Under water they should wave around a bit. Also, eggs will likely come in small strands / clumps of 20 or so - not hundreds. When you find some eggs, scrape them off with a razor blade. (In absence of the predator, the coral will easily heal)

Other notes, the eggs will not be laid on the flesh of the coral, but rather on the bare skeleton or where they have recently eaten. He said something about them often being laid near the rim of the recently eaten flesh.

Now put the corals back in the tank. And watch things for 7-10 days. You'll be watching for new damange, which should look white and somewhat crystalline. If you notice any more damage, go back to step one and repeat.

While I have never dealt with this problem personally, he described it as something that could reasonably dealt with if you could perform the manual removal processes described above.

 

[captbunzo]

Also, he commented that the wrasse would definately help, but would not be a guaranteed solution...

 

[pwhitby]

yep. Badly infested corals, pull out and throw away.

The eggs are like little tufts of white.