Pix & ID: Critters that come in your rocks: the good and the bad.

[jasonhobbs86]

yeah, i'll take another... i googled green button polyp and its very similair, mine is just super tiny...

 

[Ptyochromis]

just setup my tank...
so i bought some cheap live rock from a LFS @ 6.99lb. it had a few aiptasias growing on i bought a pep shrimp to take care of it which he did. all three of them are now gone and even the one on the overflow pipe that was itsy bitsy. but i have 3 other things growing and cant seem to figure it out... one of them looks like some sort of anemone but i'm not sure... it closes up into a ball at night but it doesnt seem to be growing longer tentacles like the aiptasia and the my pep shrimp hasnt killed it yet...

so what is it????

That man on the rock is happy to see you

 

[ReeferKimberly]

That man on the rock is happy to see you

lol dirty mind!

I thought it looked like a shark

 

[jasonhobbs86]

heres the other pics... i decided to put a bit of flake fish food in the tank before i took the pics.... it seemed to have eaten a flake almost the size of itself...

 

[jasonhobbs86]

That man on the rock is happy to see you

lol, holy **** i didnt even notice... i'm still trying to figure out what the hell those are too.... they dont move but they look like some kinda coral or maybe what used to be a couple of corals... idk..

 

[jasonhobbs86]

 

[ReeferKimberly]

Ok, not a button polyp. Some kind of anenome.

Looks like a Majano, sorry dude. Though some people like them, they are generally considered a pest because they reproduce pretty well and sting corals.

They do not reproduce as fast as aiptasia though. I kind of think they are nice.....IF they don't pop out loads of babies. I have never had one myself so I can't tell you the rate of reproduction. Just that it's fast enough to be pest-worthy.

(if you are planning a FOWLR 'fish only with live rock' i'd say keep it, there is no harm and they are kind of cool, but if you plan to do coral you should nuke it. I'd inject it with vinegar myself)

And the "man/shark"...is it soft and porous? From here it looks like a sponge.

 

[Ptyochromis]

lol, holy **** i didnt even notice... i'm still trying to figure out what the hell those are too.... they dont move but they look like some kinda coral or maybe what used to be a couple of corals... idk..

I bet they are sponges/tunicadae.

As for the polyp, if you give it a good poke/several pokes and it retreats well into the rock its a prolly a majano nem. If it just pulls its tentacles in its most likely a coral.

I would google Phyllangia and see if it looks like that.

If it is a nem, I would sneak up on it with tweasers and grab it by a tentacle/body and pull it out before it can retreat. Then hit the base with a few squirts of near boiling water to kill the food.

 

[Ptyochromis]

Anyone have anyidea what type of crab and nem these are?

 

[OKDOHK]

are the tips of the front claws black or dark on the crab?

 

[CountryBob]

sk8r thank you for this thread it is very helpfull. I recently noticed a small white object on my star polyp that looks like an egg. now there are 4 of them. Can you tell me what it might be and if I should opick them out of my tank. I am trying to attach a photo lets see what happens

 

[frogmaster421]

what are those lil jellyfish called i got them when i first setup

 

[CountryBob]

little white egg

little white egg

sk8r I recently noticed a small white egg on my star polyp. should I pluck it out. Im not sure what it is. I wish I knew how to attach a pic.

 

[CountryBob]

white egg

white egg

Cool the pic went on the post. I actually have 4 of these on the polyp.

 

[ssgtgonzo]

sk8r I recently noticed a small white egg on my star polyp. should I pluck it out. Im not sure what it is. I wish I knew how to attach a pic.

Do you have nerite snails? It looks like a nerite egg

 

[ssgtgonzo]

what are those lil jellyfish called i got them when i first setup

I think you are referring to hydroids

 

[ssgtgonzo]

I found this little guy on a piece of LR. Looks like a tiny anemone. Can anyone ID?

Last night he was all closed up, but he came out in full force this morning.

Last night's pic:

Looks like a tulip anemone. Majanos are typically very brightly colored. Tulips look like mini BTAs and don't split as easily or often as majanos. Some people like them (tulips) some get rid of them. I have one in my bta prop tank that hasn't harmed anything.

(right side)

 

[AnselnEdie]

new appearance

new appearance

I know I have a few asterina stars in my tank, but this guy just showed up. Doesn't seem to fit the profile. Can anyone ID? Friend or foe?

 

[ReeferKimberly]

He fits the profile

 

[Ptyochromis]

are the tips of the front claws black or dark on the crab?

I have no idea I could not see it from the angle I was at. I think it is the same species as this guy that jumped off my LR when I first got it.