Sea Hare?

[imtheonlylp]

not sure if this is the right board or not, but does anyone have a Sea Hare? i'm contemplating getting one from my LFS to help combat my green hair algae problem...my nitrates/ites are all fine and my phosphates have been lowered (i assume) by the use of Phos-buster additive...the problem isnt really out of hand yet, but i had it happen before in my 55g tank and it was horrible so i want to get this under wraps before it gets away from me...i do have a cleanup crew consisting of:
1 serpent star
1 brittle star
1 sea cucumber
4 scarlet hermits
10 blue-legged hermits
4 turbo snails
1 emerald crab

i'm also planning on upping my cleanup crew by at least 15-20 more snails and a couple more hermits...i did just add my 20g sump/refuge, so some culerpa is also a thought...any suggestions/comments?

 

[dc]

I don't think they're very long lived in our aquariums, and a hit or miss as far as cleaning up your tank.

 

[A30sguy]

Sea Hare

Sea Hare

I recently bought a sea hare to take care of a brown algea problem that i was having...
Holy crap it ate every bit of unwanted algea in less than two days! I highly recommend this to anyone wanting to get rid of algae. Mine's doing great. Hehe the only downside is they sort of take craps around the tank but it really isnt a big problem.

 

[ackerman]

Here is what liveaquaria has to say about them.

Caution: This fish secretes or releases toxins that may kill fish in the aquarium. The species may release toxic compounds when stressed, or release toxic compounds when it dies.

I would be very careful if you decide to get one.

 

[MJAnderson]

They ink, so run carbon if you get one. Not really toxic unless you've got a really small tank.

My sea hare did well for about 2 weeks, then just dissapeared. I've read many people having the same issue. They don't seem to be hearty. I think part of the problem is that people with new setups tend to use them for algae cleaning but they require a very stable environment.

Something heartier are Mexican Turbo snails. The big guys. They mow through hair algae (both red and green) like nobody's business. They get big (shells slightly larger than a golfball) and are known for knockign things over. But if you have a newer setup it might not be an issue.

Also, consider chaeto for your fuge. It won't go sexual and grows almost as well. I'd add snails as well. 20 wouldn't be too many. I like the trochus snails. Can right themselves unlike some astria and have cool shells.

 

[lemures-ex]

Macroalgae will help a lot because it will use the nutrients that the hair algae needs to grow.

I have two Lettuce slugs (and a billion eggs now) and they eat quite a lot of algae. They are in my fuge and it is nice and clean.

 

[lemures-ex]

Side note: If you live near Southern CA or anywhere further south along the Pacific coast you can find plenty of Sea Hares just by going snorkeling 50-100 fet into the water. Just be careful that you don't take anything from a beach that says you can't... Or don't get caught

 

[imtheonlylp]

ok so i went to petland last night and got my sea hare...what an ugly creature!! i also got the guy there to throw in a few sprigs of culerpa...i put them in my fuge and hopefully they will take root within the next couple of days...anyway, the sea hare is already taking charge of my algae problem...last night he ate to his heart's content then seemed to rest a little while...this morning before i left for work, he was at it again! i have my LR scaped somewhat loosely, so i can see between almost all the gaps and find him if he happens to get lost...ahh the benefits of having a 75g, 18" deep tank!! thanks for all the input, i'll be watching the hare with a close eye and update if anything odd happens

 

[650-IS350]

Feed it NORI if you start running out of nausiance algea... I feed mine NORI every other day. 2 strips of 1/4" x 3 inch long.

 

[imtheonlylp]

(un)fortunately, he will have a LOT to eat on for a while...i dont think i'll be running out soon...i have tried EVERYTHING to get rid of this stuff...you name it and ive done it..i promise...so maybe he'll get really fat lol...i even thought about getting him a playmate to be sure the tank stays super clean, but i'll give him a chance first

 

[lemures-ex]

You should get two. They lay eggs like crazy. Mine have laid 3 egg spirals in the last 2 weeks.

I have yet to see a baby slug in there but it's still neat.

 

[Ryanqk]

i had one the size of a grapefruit! it was a algae eating monster! but had some wierd defense mechanisms it would turn the entire tank to slime in a minute if disturbed so i gave him away.

 

[imtheonlylp]

update: dead sea hare...was fine last night...then just now i checked the tank as my actinics came on and a hermit was feasting on its blobulated corpse...lol

 

[kjord97]

Purchased my sea hare last night, he is about the size of a baseball and has been passed on to different tanks for about a year now. He enjoys eating pieces of blanched lettuce and has already taken charge in the 125 reef tank and eating all the algae in the tank. Moves pretty quick for a little blob.

 

[650-IS350]

My seahare is in great condition.. is about 3-5 inches. I have stopped feeding him nori... too much algae build up right now... DIATOM bloom and hair algea is keeping him busy... and water parameter is decent not the best. TAP ... RO/DI not hooked up yet. there are some Ammonia, Nitrites and Nitrates present and still he's looking fat and eating 24/7