What could have done this??

[soulbereaver]

ok, so I have a brand new tank, about 10 days old. I had a very good sized aptasia growing on one of my rocks. (came with it). I was planning on removing the thing eventually, but it was something to look at for now until my tank cycles.

Today I wake up and something had gotten to it for sure, all of it's tenticles looked munched on and shrivled. Tonight I come home from work and the whole thing is gone. I've looked everywhere and it's just flat out not there.

Ive noticed a few hitchhikers in my tank thus far, couple of snails, starfish, but i have no clue what could have eaten an entire aptasia the size of a chicken egg in one day??

And whatever it is... what else will it eat? I'm kinda nervous.

 

[sps1-2-b]

Whatever it is I want it. lol. Only a very few things eat aiptasia, the ones that come to mind are peppermint shrimps, copperband raccoon and kleins butterflies, berghias. Can't think of any others.

 

[EllieSuz]

Count your lucky stars! But here's the thing; they can disintegrate like that and then show up in a dozen new places. Keep a careful watch. Once they get a hold on your tank, it's a disaster.

 

[bolandess]

Did you buy the tank new or move it from somewhere else? You could have a peppermint shrimp in there! I have one in my tank and the bugger never comes out and they are KNOWN for aiptaisia control...but they hide...very well...

They can also turn "clear" if they are stressed out and will look like a peppermint candy when they calm down...


<a href="http://s93.photobucket.com/albums/l59/bolandess/?action=view&current=Peppermint_Shrimp_ps.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l59/bolandess/Peppermint_Shrimp_ps.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[bolandess]

And if it IS a peppermint...they should leave everything else alone. I have a variety of inverts and fish and no one is damaged yet!

 

[soulbereaver]

yeah I picked up the live rock from a very trusted guy I know. The rock was already well established so who knows what could be hiding in it. There are some massive caves and such in this rock. I just don't want some huge crab of some sort which is going to also make a lunch out of anything else i put in the tank.

 

[sps1-2-b]

I doubt it's a crab. They usually don't eat aiptasia.

 

[soulbereaver]

good everything i've ever heard about crabs is that eventually they're just a nucence. I would like to keep my tank crab free. Now to figure out what happened to the aptasia...

 

[cowdawg]

I doubt it got eaten. It probably just released itself and floated to somewhere else. I bet a new one will grow where the old one was. Those things are nasty, next time kill it when you see it