Suggestions for improving SPS polyp extension

[mpoletti]

What are AFEW please.

Acropora Eating flatworms

 

[jlinzmaier]

Are you positive they are aefw and not planaria? Good luck

Wish I knew for sure! I assumed that the FW's that came off one of my sick milles were the dreaded AEFW's and that's why the coral had been sick with little to no PE.

They were tiny - about 1/4th of a mm long. The coloring was a shade of light brown and dark brown.

Could other FW's (planaria) cause a similar illness/symptoms?? Could this potentially be the cause of the birdsnest and other species having problems with PE and tissue loss??

I'm sure there were no RB's and didn't see any other pests other than these tiny and nearly overlooked FW's.


I really wish I could have gotten a pic but they were just too small. Is there only one specific species of AEFW?? I was under the impression that there are so many species of FW's that there were a few different species that preyed upon corals (specificly acros).

Now that I think of it I have a few corals that are doing well but have small spots of tissue loss at the base or underside of branches. That sounds like the nesting grounds of AEFW's. However, these little spots of tissue loss isn't limited to only acros. I had it on the millies, two birdsnest (which are now nearly entirely dead), two stylos, and several acros. I merely attributed the illness to my recent alk fluctuations, but now I'm doubting that a bit. At the very least it could certainly have stressed the corals and left them more susceptible to infestation and infection.

Geez. If they aren't the AEFW's and I can rid them with some simple dosing of FWE then my troubles would be much easier. I'm not sure just how susceptible AEFW's are to FWE, but the ones that came off the millie came off during the FWE dip. I saw nothing more come off during the following lugols dip.

Any thoughts??

Jeremy

 

[mpoletti]

There are no definite scientific classification of the polyclad we call AEFW. I do know a few people that have been studying them for a few years and hopefully one day we will have more facts on them. Until then, we only have what we have learned through our shared experiences.

I have seen some that love millies and some that do not. Do I believe their are more than one type, yes. But that is just my opinion.

I would take out a couple pieces that you believe are infested and dip them in a white bottomed bucket. If they are there, within a couple of minutes you will see them fall off. If the FW falls of the coral, then you will know. The larger they get, the longer they hold on. Planaria do not live on the coral itself.

 

[jlinzmaier]

Well that's exactly what I did last night. What I saw wasn't planaria and was quite small. I only saw a few FW's (AEFW's I'm guessing) mixed in with several bits of detritus and other tiny bits of "stuff" that came off the rock. The only thing that came off during the FWE dip was what I think may be the AEFW's. I saw no more FW's and no RB's in the following lugols dip. I saw nothing large like planaria from either dip.

I would take out a couple pieces that you believe are infested and dip them in a white bottomed bucket.

I'm assuming you mean a revive dip???

I'll give it a try after supper tonight.

Thanks again!!

Jeremy

 

[jlinzmaier]

Can someone post a pic of a true AEFW so I can be sure this is what I'm seeing when I do the dip tonight??

Thanks.

Jeremy

 

[mpoletti]

 

[psteeleb]

I agree with everything Mark is saying

here are a couple pics I took of the lil buggers when I got them

after I baisted some off a tri color, my anthias ate them like cookies when I would blow them off

eggs

a prostrata (mille) before

damage from AEFW

it made a great recovery

 

[mpoletti]

I agree with everything Mark is saying

here are a couple pics I took of the lil buggers when I got them

after I baisted some off a tri color, my anthias ate them like cookies when I would blow them off

They still give me the heebeegeebees But knowing they can be beat sure empowers you

 

[psteeleb]

They still give me the heebeegeebees But knowing they can be beat sure empowers you

heebeegeebees is a good way to describe them but with persistance the corals can come back

the one with the eggs (I just call the blob) it was almost a complete regrow from encrusting

that prostrata took about 6 months or more to get the PE back (not the best pic)

 

[jlinzmaier]

What a pic!!! That is exactly what I have!! They are quite motile and develop two little wings on each side in the back when swimming.

I'm convinced these are in my tank but they aren't holding true to some AEFW criteria.

I couldn't get a close up but here is a pic with several around a penny to show their size.

I dipped in revive and FWE tonight and many bailed off the corals but didn't die. In fact almost half an hour later there were still some swimming in the revive and FWE solution.

I was so dedicated to find out what these truly were that I took a 25min drive to walmart to buy a $30 kids microscope so I could get a better view. They look exactly like the pic above when resting still.

Few things throwing me off:

1) They're so small. In the picture with the penny, does that seem like an accurate representation of the size of AEFW's?? Maybe my 6 line is getting them after they get any bigger???

2) There is no discrimination among stony corals. I pulled out a birdsnest with only a tiny bit of tissue left and found these same FW's all over.

3) They show a great ability to free swim. When they bail off the corals they can move quite fast and are entirely capable of swimming in any direction. I did see some crawling and dsome swimming.


To get a live one to veiw, after I got the microscope, I took one of my very healthy tort frags and just swished it in my bucket of water and saw like 4-5 of them. I get the feeling they're everywhere. If that's the case, where do I begin?? I can't dip everything in my entire tank including all the LR.

I did examine the corals very carefully and couldn't find any eggs. Of course all I had available to look with was a flashlight and a 2X magnifying glass.

Am I on the right track?? These sure seem to look like AEFW's but I'm dumbfounded by their presence on other corals.

Again, really appreciate all the help!!!!

Jeremy

 

[jlinzmaier]

OK. Thought about it all night. Becuase of their size and presence on corals other than acros, I'm now not entirely convinced I'm dealing with AEFW's.

I woke up this morning and took some pics through the microscope.

So heres the pic with no magnification and a penny to reference their size.

Here are some pics under 10X magnification. The little critter was still swimming inside the drop of water at this point.

Still in 10X magnification but not swimming anymore. Once they stop swimming they take on the oval shape just like the pics that everyone else has posted. They aren't entirely oval in these pics yet but after some time of not moving they form a nice oval. When they swim or crawl they become quite elongated (double their length) and develop the little tail at each side behind them (slightly seen in the first magnified pic).

Here is a pic under 100X magnification

Any ideas???

Jeremy

 

[becon776]

I def have planaria in my tank. oval body with an upside down U at the bottom end coming to two points.. whitish in color. They don't look like the oval shapes that people are posting. Or at least some type of little larvae. ALWAYS see them on the glass. recently aquired a healthy target mandarin. When I watch where he's going and picking on the glass I always see a couple of them.

 

[Myka]

Jeremy, what ever happened with your flatworms?

 

[jlinzmaier]

Turns out they weren't AEFW's. I just had a common non predatory FW. lowered my alk level and the SPS have done spectacular. Now the SPS are the prize of my display by far. As for the FW's, since i added a melanarus wrasse over two years ago i haven't seen a single one

Jeremy

 

[Myka]

Ah ok. They don't look like AEFW to me at all, so I was just wondering what turned out from it, and what you finally did to improve PE. I had a Grey Head Wrasse (came to me as a female Melanurus) that was great for anything "worm", he was a poop disturber though and also killed the Peppermint Shrimp, Emerald Crabs, Scarlet Hermits, and the occasional Astraea Snail. He had to go. I replaced him with a Yellow Coris who seems to do pretty well too but leaves the inverts alone.

 

[jlinzmaier]

My melanarus gets himself in a bit of trouble at times too but I overfeed him and he doesn't do all that much damage to my CUC

Jeremy

 

[Myka]

Oh you're lucky! They Grey Head was good while he was a she. When she turned to a he and reached about 4.5" that's when trouble started. He is a stunning fish though, and I do miss him.