Peppermint Shrimp vs. Aptasia
- Thread starter neyugn0w01
- Start date
medic29
Premium Member
I got some macro algae from a friend for my refugium, now I have aptasia in my refugium; none has shown up in my display tank, but I have 2 pepermint shrimp in there so they may be taking care of any that show up. They ate what was in there before, which is why I got them. Just wondering if they are an issue in my refugium.
Any thoughts.
Any thoughts.
FishyLover
New member
http://www.marinedepot.com/homepage.asp
This aiptasia control works the best that I've tried.
I have had 2 copperbanded butterflies and they didn't touch mine. We've also tried pepermints and they didn't touch it either.
This aiptasia control works the best that I've tried.
I have had 2 copperbanded butterflies and they didn't touch mine. We've also tried pepermints and they didn't touch it either.
revclyburn
Active member
Just tried that stuff today,
will post results. Seems to work fast, and if they don't sprout up anywhere else, I will be more than happy to buy some shares in Blue Line, the mfg. This was recommended to me by a lfs employee, said it worked for him and the have 2 huge tanks of coral to protect.
rev
will post results. Seems to work fast, and if they don't sprout up anywhere else, I will be more than happy to buy some shares in Blue Line, the mfg. This was recommended to me by a lfs employee, said it worked for him and the have 2 huge tanks of coral to protect.
rev
I find it interesting that we all have had different levels of success with the standard fixes. My experience on this subject goes back a long time. I battled aiptasia in the late '80's and early 1990's when little was known about natural predators. I was a young guy who read all he could to try to solve the problem. Every tank that tried to keep corals had aiptasia at some level. CBBF's were the preffered method for extermination for those with big tanks and a lot of fish keeping expertise.
Kalk paste and the other chemical methods seemed the best for the rest of us but, you could never get them all. There were always some behind rocks and other places where you could not get at them. You could keep the population low with these methods but never exterminate them completely.
Then the mystery of the several different species of "peppermint shrimp" was solved. Although two species do eat them, IME only one species is truly effective: L. wurdemanni. The others look almost exactly the same. I have cleared four or more tanks with these shrimp. They do not attack anything that I know of (tube worms, small feather dusters, clams, SPS, Softies, are all safe - of course there are always exceptions). The only issue is that they have been known to rip at a LPS to get a piece of food from it and can do damage in the process.
The other key to success is to not have a lot of other food for the shrimps. If fish food ever hits the sand in your tank, these guys will find it and get used to eating it. If they are hungry they will eat aiptasia. In most reefs they will get enough to stay alive by scavenging at night but will still be hungry enough to clear your tank forever.
Just my experience,
John
Kalk paste and the other chemical methods seemed the best for the rest of us but, you could never get them all. There were always some behind rocks and other places where you could not get at them. You could keep the population low with these methods but never exterminate them completely.
Then the mystery of the several different species of "peppermint shrimp" was solved. Although two species do eat them, IME only one species is truly effective: L. wurdemanni. The others look almost exactly the same. I have cleared four or more tanks with these shrimp. They do not attack anything that I know of (tube worms, small feather dusters, clams, SPS, Softies, are all safe - of course there are always exceptions). The only issue is that they have been known to rip at a LPS to get a piece of food from it and can do damage in the process.
The other key to success is to not have a lot of other food for the shrimps. If fish food ever hits the sand in your tank, these guys will find it and get used to eating it. If they are hungry they will eat aiptasia. In most reefs they will get enough to stay alive by scavenging at night but will still be hungry enough to clear your tank forever.
Just my experience,
John
revclyburn
Active member
I tried this
yesterday, had aiptasia in between some zoas, mushrooms, crevices I thought I couldn't get too, and one on the glass. I applied this stuff and this morning, not a sight on any aiptasia. The shrooms, Zoas are all perked up, and the little slightly noticeable anenomes are gone too. Thsi stuff works great. I'm going to get 2 more bottles as a back up, along with some shrimp. Should they come back, I will have everything I need to get rid of them.
RevClyburn
yesterday, had aiptasia in between some zoas, mushrooms, crevices I thought I couldn't get too, and one on the glass. I applied this stuff and this morning, not a sight on any aiptasia. The shrooms, Zoas are all perked up, and the little slightly noticeable anenomes are gone too. Thsi stuff works great. I'm going to get 2 more bottles as a back up, along with some shrimp. Should they come back, I will have everything I need to get rid of them.
RevClyburn
badpacket
Premium Member
So, how do we know this is any different than Joe's Juice? Seems like they are applied the same. If its milky white, and seems to have both a liquid and some solids in it, then I wouldn't be surprised if its the exact same thing, just under a new name.
Try and get a med-large Aptasia to feed on some of that, and see if it pulls back after ingesting some and is gone 5-10 minutes later.
Try and get a med-large Aptasia to feed on some of that, and see if it pulls back after ingesting some and is gone 5-10 minutes later.
