Aipstasia? In Public Aquaria

[Alexopora]

I just visited my local public aquaria and in the midst of admiring fish and marine life that I cant possible keep at home, something caught my eye upon closer inspection of the rockwork. Are these aiptasia?

 

[blaxsun]

Looks like it. Can you imagine the task ahead of you!?

 

[Alexopora]

Looks like it. Can you imagine the task ahead of you!?

I dont wanna imagine. But let me tell you the entire rockwork of this tunnel segment (reef fish, sharks, rays, groupers, turtles and moray eels mostly) is just filled with these aiptasia. The amount of aiptasia in that aquarium has gotta be years and years of spreading.

 

[blaxsun]

I dont wanna imagine. But let me tell you the entire rockwork of this tunnel segment (reef fish, sharks, rays, groupers, turtles and moray eels mostly) is just filled with these aiptasia. The amount of aiptasia in that aquarium has gotta be years and years of spreading.

$0 budget for tank maintenance, lol.

 

[KrisReef]

I’m on my phone but I’m wondering if you are looking at colonial hydroids vs aiptasia?

 

[Alexopora]

I’m on my phone but I’m wondering if you are looking at colonial hydroids vs aiptasia?

It looked exactly like aiptasia just lot less brown like ones we usually encounter in our tanks.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

It looked exactly like aiptasia just lot less brown like ones we usually encounter in our tanks.

Very possibly one of the less invasive species... For example, aiptasia native to the Gulf of Mexico and parts of the Caribbean are as reef safe as any other anemone...

 

[WheatToast]

Very possibly one of the less invasive species... For example, aiptasia native to the Gulf of Mexico and parts of the Caribbean are as reef safe as any other anemone...

Might also be the result of lighting; Aiptasia often become very pale under dim light (ex. in dumps and overflows) and I doubt the lights public aquariums use on their fish-only tanks are as intense as those geared towards growing corals (at least not at the depth the Aiptasia are growing at).

 

[Alexopora]

Very possibly one of the less invasive species... For example, aiptasia native to the Gulf of Mexico and parts of the Caribbean are as reef safe as any other anemone...

Possible like you said. Although, this is in Malaysia so it could have been a local species since majority of the fish in the aquarium is from our native waters. Then again I’m not sure if there are any Aiptasia native to the Indo Pacific.