Anyone ever see Aiptasia attach itself to your fish???

[brandon429]

someone needs to write a sick article

fish as reef tank vectors, invasions as you least expected.

 

[HiddenUser]

I think Bergia Nudis are your best bet...Aiptasia is all they eat. But like everything else in this hobby, patience is key. Seem like it takes 3-4 months before Aiptasia will be gone. You're really just adding them initially to reproduce and their spawn will be the ones that do the work.

Copperbands, Peppermint Shrimp, Filefish, etc all seem to be hit or miss. This is just my experience.

 

[chadb202]

I don't have a macro lens, but I'll see what I can do. Then I also need to get the fish to hold still long enough to get a clear shot. Need to dangle some seaweed in the tank and teach him to 'stay' like my dog does for treats.

Ha-ha. My tangs eat seaweed from my fingers.

 

[brandon429]

with dinos and now anemones being featured, id say every reef tank benthic and pelagic invader we see in reefing can come in via fish, from a seemingly clean system. sure helps explain lots of lost tanks.

 

[chadb202]

I think Bergia Nudis are your best bet...Aiptasia is all they eat. But like everything else in this hobby, patience is key. Seem like it takes 3-4 months before Aiptasia will be gone. You're really just adding them initially to reproduce and their spawn will be the ones that do the work.

Copperbands, Peppermint Shrimp, Filefish, etc all seem to be hit or miss. This is just my experience.

Thanks. That is the plan. Bit I'm having an issue getting my no3 down to zero. Ok think the aiptasia are creating so much waste that it's messing with water quality.

 

[chadb202]

Thanks. That is the plan. Bit I'm having an issue getting my no3 down to zero. Ok think the aiptasia are creating so much waste that it's messing with water quality.

Water changes and Carbon dosing. Now I'm developing these slimy stringy things that are totally ugly. Vacuuming them out. But I seem to be going in the wrong direction.

 

[chadb202]

Water changes and Carbon dosing. Now I'm developing these slimy stringy things that are totally ugly. Vacuuming them out. But I seem to be going in the wrong direction.

Help. Please. What do I do ???

 

[Brian Kim]

I've had a mixture of Peppermint shrimp from a couple of different LFS and I've ordered some from Live Aquaria. At one point there were 4 or 5 of them in my tank.

They were drip acclimated. They devoured food like crazy. I'd see them come out during the day all the time when I was feeding...They just never developed a taste for Aiptasia.

The ones from L.A. didn't work for me but the ones I got from my lfs did the job, I got 5 of them for a 45 gallon tank though. Heard there are 2 different types of peppermint shrimps.
Edit: Caution, they will go after your snails, flip them and eat them

 

[scardall]

peppermint shrimp NOT Camel shrimp might help. cleaner wrasse ??????????

 

[Brandon Chi]

I have had great success with peppermint shrimps I put two in my 60 gallon on within the week aiptasia all gone I never seen them eat one but I wouldn't se any more aiptasia. There are two types of species of peppermints one eats aiptasia and the other doesn't. Also they will hardly attack huge aiptasia mostly the med to small size. Also another old trick I would do for aiptasia is lime juice and needle syring that would do a great job without ill affect on the tank . Just do a few a day with lime juice then wait till next day and do again

 

[chadb202]

peppermint shrimp NOT Camel shrimp might help. cleaner wrasse ??????????

How do you tell the difference ??

 

[scardall]

Peppermint shrimp on left and camel shrimp on the right. I took pics of each with me to lfs. @chadb202

 

[adhd_nerd]

As other have said, copperband, filefish and peppermint shrimp are hit or miss. I've had decent luck with file fish and copperband. Not so much on peppermint. Nudi branches are the best the will go in overflow and sump eventually, but does take time. The problem is if the Nudi do not wipe out every last aptasia before they die; the aptasia will re-emerge.

Also, copperband will pick at/kill your feather dusters.

I have yet to learn how anyone keeps their tank completely aptasia free.

 

[tanklife3]

My rock is covered. Not sure what to do next. Scrub it ? Bergia nudibranches ? Copper band ? Peppermint ? I think they are adding to my no3 .

Pm me with more details on your tank and I can give a more specific answer

 

[rayn]

To the OP original question. I have and had it multiple times as well. However my fish was a bottom dweller ambush predator.

 

[knukles55]

I have never heard of this but pretty neat find

 

[HiddenUser]

To the OP original question. I have and had it multiple times as well. However my fish was a bottom dweller ambush predator.

Any my Foxface sleeps on the sandbed in the corner of the tank up against the glass...so potentially plenty of ways to be exposed to Aiptasia if they're moving around at night...

I have never heard of this but pretty neat find

Neat, but not neat. Just another good reason to QT your fish I guess.

 

[scardall]

As other have said, copperband, filefish and peppermint shrimp are hit or miss. I've had decent luck with file fish and copperband. Not so much on peppermint. Nudi branches are the best the will go in overflow and sump eventually, but does take time. The problem is if the Nudi do not wipe out every last aptasia before they die; the aptasia will re-emerge.

Also, copperband will pick at/kill your feather dusters.

I have yet to learn how anyone keeps their tank completely aptasia free.

Mine is. Had 2 aptasia on clam. got 3 peppermint shrimp and in a week or so they were gone. No returning aptasia for almost a year now.

 

[haninja]

I had very good results with file fish

 

[chelltom]

Question will the Pep Shrimp go after your good Nems as well ?