My CRASE fish!

[luvabunny]

The only fish I purchased at CRASE was a filefish. The closest species I can come up with on a google search is a planehead filefish.

I bought it specifically to eat aptasia - which has thrived despite a trio of rather large peppermint shrimp living in the tank. Specifically, I had aptasia sprouting in the middle of one of my favorite zoanthid colonies - a pretty, bright pink group. The rest of the aptasia were ugly and needed to get under control, but it was really my pink zoas that prompted the purchase.

So, I bought it on Saturday, and as of this morning, my zoa colony appeared completely free of irritating aptasias. Not wanting to get too excited, as the lights had been off all night, I went to work and returned this evening for another look. Still no aptasia.

I am so happy! Yet another pest eradicated by a completely natural solution. The info I can find on the planehead filefish is somewhat minimal, but so far it has been somewhat reclusive, content to swim in the shadows at the back of the tank. It eats well - so far flakes and frozen brineshrimp and mysis, besides the aptasia - and for a dull brown is really sort of pretty in a mottled way when it actually comes out into the light.

Thanks Paul for steering me in his direction. I really didn't know how many little aptasia I had, until I started noticing them disappearing. And I certainly didn't know that a filefish was my answer. I knew they were seahorse safe, but not that they ate aptasia.

I will try to post a pic, but like I said, he likes to stay toward the back of the tank in the shadows. Maybe in a few more days, he will be out more and I can get a good shot. I'll also try to get a good shot of the zoas. They are at a bad angle for taking a pic on a bowfront tank, and the color just isn't even close on my phone.

 

[luvabunny]

Here's a few pics I found of him. I really thought the one of him alone didn't turn out, until I uploaded the pics from my phone.
The other two were just accidents, as he got in the photo of other fish.

 

[happysak]

From WetWebMedia

"Most any and all frozen and fresh foods will sustain files. Meaty clams and crustacean foodstuffs will always shake one out of the doldrums. Don't neglect their need for vegetable material though.

Stomach contents analyses reveal a broad mix of hydrozoans, algae, Sedentariate Polychaetes, sponges, gastropods, amphipods, gorgonians, sea grass (a true vascular plant), colonial anemones and tunicates. Not good reef-tank candidates."

 

[luvabunny]

"Stomach contents analyses reveal a broad mix of hydrozoans (?), algae (got plenty), Sedentariate Polychaetes (huh?), sponges , gastropods, amphipods, gorgonians (don't have any of the above), sea grass (none of this either), colonial anemones (aptasia? that's the reason I bought him) and tunicates (who would miss them?). Not good reef-tank candidates (he picked the apatasia out of my zoas without harming a single one)."

He's a pretty slow swimmer, so if it appears he is munching on stuff I don't want him to, it shouldn't be hard to get him out.

Just for the record, the outer edges of my xenia appear to have bite marks (or something) on them. So far, I haven't seen the filefish nip it, but I have seen the lawnmower blenny. This is one of the only corals I have seen flatworms on also, so it could have come from the wrasse. I'll keep any eye out and try to determine exactly who the culprit it.

 

[lauremf2002]

hydrozoans are tiny jellyfish I think. I got them on my glass during my cycle. And you could always buy sponges, amphipods and gorgonians. Maybe if you keep him well fed he will leave the good stuff alone. But, what do I know...

 

[gimmic]

I have two in my tank. Zero aptasia. I even tried to grow it for a while but could not keep it grown fast enough to feed the fish. (from a failed nudibranch breeding attempt)

One of them will eat nori just like the other fishes, the other one is a little more picky and will eat frozen foods only.

After about 3-5 months, I started having aggression problems between the two. I thought I was going to lose one, eventually when I saw the weaker one's bladder failing I was ready to pull it from the tank before it died. It was floating face first in the sand. Heather convinced me to move it to the sump and it has progressively gotten stronger.. I have been amazed as it seems to be fully back to health at this point!