Pics of damage to SPS from peppermint shrimp

M

mightymizz

New member
I asked in Reef Disc. if others have experienced their peppermint shrimp eating their SPS and got a few replies. Would still like to hear from you guys on that question also, but it wouldn't allow me to edit in the pictures I took this morning of the damage from last night. I couldn't even edit the title to mention that I now had pictures??

I personally saw one of my peppermint shrimp doing this damage. Your thoughts?? Heres the pics of the pocilipora that got eaten. The white skeleton used to be polyp extending coral tissue.

SAM_0620.jpg


SAM_0619.jpg
 
Powerhead is behind the coral. I know the picture looks like it is right next to it, but the coral receives no direct pressure from the powerhead. I made sure I was very comfortable with the flow it was receiving.

Also, I WATCHED this peppermint shrimp do this damage last night. It was perfectly healthy before lights went out, I was doing my nightly inspection and witnessed his little claws leaving the bare bone white skeleton in its wake.
 
I would also be suspect of it maybe being the power head. The shrimp may have been eating what died. I would move it away from the power head.
 
Well, I understand that the powerhead looks very close to the coral. But, like I mentioned it really is behind it a bit, AND the direct flow, even from the Koralia does not hit the coral.

The shrimp would just keep gouging polyp after polyp. I guess my point of sharing thread was to get insight, and to see if it has happened to anyone else. Also, as a potential precaution before others put this shrimp into their display and start to lose coral and have the tough time of trying to catch them out.

Appreciate the insights folks!! For my personal situation, I will be trying to get the peppermint shrimp out of my display.
 
I've got several pepermints and all my sps grow like weeds can't say I've ever seen damage from a shrimp and I also have a dancing shrimp aka camel shrimp
 
Are they peps for sure and not camel shrimp? they look similar and i have heard of camels causing damage to corals, mostly softies though. any other sps in your tank?
 
As far as I know, they are the regular peppermint shrimps, not the camel shrimp. I do have one maxi mini anemone, and some other SPS that at this point don't seem to have been touched...yet.

It's just painful to watch it last night bring his claws down onto healthy flesh and just....BOOM....white skeleton. Rinse and repeat.
 
I have had true peppermints do this exact same thing. It was to an ORA green birds nest only. No other coral. They were defiantly eating a live coral.
 
Might want to increase your feeding to your inverts. If you were starving what would you try to eat in order to just survive????
 
Wow..I have never seen that. I personally WATCHED my peppermints engorge my hammer coral in front of my eyes and have read others with similar issues with LPS....but never SPS.

With that being said, peppermints are creatures of opportunity and will take advantage of your corals if they are hungry. Now that they have a 'taste' for SPS, you may need to get rid of them cause they may attack again regardless if you feed more.

Mine were permanately banned to my sump...for life.


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jc-reef said:
Wow..I have never seen that. I personally WATCHED my peppermints engorge my hammer coral in front of my eyes and have read others with similar issues with LPS....but never SPS.

With that being said, peppermints are creatures of opportunity and will take advantage of your corals if they are hungry. Now that they have a 'taste' for SPS, you may need to get rid of them cause they may attack again regardless if you feed more.

Mine were permanately banned to my sump...for life.


-------
Click to expand...

No kidding! I just hope there are some SPS to return to after i get home from work. Then I hope nighttime allows me to catch these guys!

I was really wanting to get some skunk cleaner shrimp too soon, and only got these peps. to help me with one baby aptasia...which is gone by the way now. Any info on skunk cleaner shrimp?
 
Bad shrimp.. I have heard of similar issues from peppermints. I've never had any issues with skunk cleaner or fire shrimps.
 
MammothReefer said:
sure it was the shrimp not the pump that is like a half inch away from it?
Click to expand...

Sorry, but I already addressed the issue of the pump....:eek1:

Anyways:
Bad news first: Got home tonight and the pocilipora was even more picked and destroyed. Both peppermint shrimp were munching on it, so both were culprits and not just one of them.

Good news: I caught them both and they are in a strainer in the sump until I can take them back to LFS in the morning.

I hope the coral will recover, but it will be an uphill battle at this point for it. Not much flesh left, and my frag tank wont be ready until over a week to frag what remains.
 
hey i have had a pep that did the same thing to a procilli of mine. I had to manually remove him. it was only 1 pep. i have about 3 more in the tank that do not harm it at all. it was just the 1. maybe it is a peppermint gone bad! like a non reef friendly shrimp that disguises itself as a friendly. kinda like a monarch? just a thought but i have seen a peppermint shrimp do damage to an SPS specifically a green porcillipora.however after removing the shrimp the growth quickly covered the dead area of skeleton
 
Do you have a picture of the shrimp so we can see it it is a Peppermint or Camel?
 
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