Ctenophore (comb jelly)

[Brian Almeida]

I'm looking for a solution to an outbreak of comb jelly in my reef. At least once a day I use a coral feeder tube to dislodge as many threadlike appendages to be netted or sent down the overflow. Has anyone dealt with these and is there anyway to get rid of them?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Please pleas please, get us some pictures. I love odd stuff and would love to see them.
Also what and how much are you feeding. Sumpless tank? Etc?

From what I know they usually die off pretty quickly due to a lack of foods in the tank.

As far as getting rid of them, food control, oxidisers(particulate control) , coral snow(another particulate control) and ime some fish who pick like angels and wrasses. They like peppermint shrimp and my Pygmy angel won't target the larger adults but will eat the small ones before they form.

 

[reef lover]

Agreed with above I had a large pop. Of them in the nem tank when I first started it couple months later none to be found.

 

[S-t-r-e-t-c-h]

They don't really reproduce very quickly so you can usually eradicate them by just physically removing them. It's a little harder if they're settled on the rock, but something with a hard edge will help lift them off, so that you can just siphon them out. If they're on a coral, they're usually easy enough to scrape off with a fingernail.

Edit: I should be clear; the threads that you see from them regenerate pretty fast. You need to extract the bodies if you are going to get them out for good.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I kind want y'all to send me some. Lol
I've only had the one.

 

[Tahoe61]

I kind want y'all to send me some. Lol
I've only had the one.

I always get mine on Sinularia or Sarcophyton. Mine only spread out at night, as soon as the lights come on they retract and are gone through out the lighting period. I have noticed that I started with one now have three but I feed heavily in this tank so I cut back a little with no new comb jellies noted.

I think they are very very cool.

 

[drawman]

I would also like to see pics!

 

[S-t-r-e-t-c-h]

I always get mine on Sinularia or Sarcophyton. Mine only spread out at night, as soon as the lights come on they retract and are gone through out the lighting period. I have noticed that I started with one now have three but I feed heavily in this tank so I cut back a little with no new comb jellies noted.

I think they are very very cool.

Anytime I've ever gotten them, they have irritated the corals around them to no end. I remove them on sight now for the sake of the other inhabitants... I generally tend to favor the biodiversity aspect of the tank, so I'd leave them be if they let the corals around them open up...

 

[S-t-r-e-t-c-h]

I would also like to see pics!

There's really not much to see, but this thread has some pictures:

http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f184/comb-jelly-216722.html

 

[Brian Almeida]

I really can't get a clear pic with my phone. I was able to id them through lionslair. They are attached to the rock work just a real pain to try and remove. And yes I know they regenerate quickly. Right now my tank is fish less 180g. A lot of coral sps , lps and inverts. I'm feeding about 3x a week.

 

[S-t-r-e-t-c-h]

I really can't get a clear pic with my phone. I was able to id them through lionslair. They are attached to the rock work just a real pain to try and remove. And yes I know they regenerate quickly. Right now my tank is fish less 180g. A lot of coral sps , lps and inverts. I'm feeding about 3x a week.

Try using a coffee stirring straw and use the end to scrape it off. Once you lift one of the edges, you should be able to get under the body more easily and lift the whole thing off.

 

[Tahoe61]

@badluckman

 

[mtfish]

Learned something new today. I get comb jellies a lot when collecting salt water, but did not know there were benthic forms. The issues sound a lot like hydroids as far as being a pain for tanks. I have never seen them in person, but I too like to learn about weird stuff. Not that I have any experience with them, but would think you could suck them up with a turkey baster?