Having Issues with Some Euphyllia

[CCK_8814]

Hey guys, I’m having some issues with some of my euphyllia. The majority of my colonies are fine, opening up normal, looks happy & healthy. However, there’s 2 colonies in particular that are acting strange along with a few frags. I’ve had about 8 heads of euphyllia just die over last month or two for no apparent reason. Some bailout while others get a very light/mild form of BJD. I’ve dipped the 2 colonies in question in Revive & iodine. I had an issue with Phosphate being high due to a bad test kit but it is now stable at around 0.10 (I’ve always kept it high). Other parameters are as follows:

Alk 8.5
Cal 460
Mag 1380
Phos 0.1
Nitrate 10-15

Today I pulled out one of the frags that was a double head but the 2nd head had died yesterday. Upon closer inspection today I saw some red “bugs” crawling on it. The reminded me of the pods I get from reef nutrition. They did not look, resemble or remind me of flat worms. There was also a grey with black spot chiton type deal on the frag as well. Any help is appreciated in getting to the bottom of my issue. I may just start doing bayer dips every other day or as needed to clear things up. Thanks in advance!

 

[vetteguy53081]

Wow, dog gone it. Appears to be a nudibranch or isopod and those bugs !!
Don’t freak out and think your tank is doomed if you make this discovery. You can live with them. If you are starting a new tank with frags, be proactive and use dips to kill any potential hitchhikers. Eggs tend to congregate around the base of corals so make sure you snip the coral above the base of the frag plug before dipping. Do the same preventive dip for red bugs
Certain Pipefish do prey on red bugs, however they can be picky eaters and are difficult to keep in an aquarium.
The best way to treat is to remove all infected coral to quarantine if possible. Prophylactic (preventative) dips like the iodine based Lugols solution and reef dip can be used to kill off the red bugs, but in some instances they may not be 100% effective so be sureinspect corals all carefully and re-dip if necessary. People seem to have more success by using a more concentrated dip.
In terms of biological control agents, people have got mixed results with the usual helpers like 6- lined Wrasses and even Yellow Clown Gobies. A lot of success has been reported using a Dragonfaced Pipefish, which should eat up the bugs pretty quickly.

 

[CCK_8814]

Wow, dog gone it. Appears to be a nudibranch or isopod and those bugs !!
Don’t freak out and think your tank is doomed if you make this discovery. You can live with them. If you are starting a new tank with frags, be proactive and use dips to kill any potential hitchhikers. Eggs tend to congregate around the base of corals so make sure you snip the coral above the base of the frag plug before dipping. Do the same preventive dip for red bugs
Certain Pipefish do prey on red bugs, however they can be picky eaters and are difficult to keep in an aquarium.
The best way to treat is to remove all infected coral to quarantine if possible. Prophylactic (preventative) dips like the iodine based Lugols solution and reef dip can be used to kill off the red bugs, but in some instances they may not be 100% effective so be sureinspect corals all carefully and re-dip if necessary. People seem to have more success by using a more concentrated dip.
In terms of biological control agents, people have got mixed results with the usual helpers like 6- lined Wrasses and even Yellow Clown Gobies. A lot of success has been reported using a Dragonfaced Pipefish, which should eat up the bugs pretty quickly.

I checked some other pieces and the 2 colonies but did not see any of the bugs or anything else on them. I’m not convinced the grey one was a nudi, I’m leaning towards a baby chiton since I seem to have random large populations of them.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I checked some other pieces and the 2 colonies but did not see any of the bugs or anything else on them. I’m not convinced the grey one was a nudi, I’m leaning towards a baby chiton since I seem to have random large populations of them.

Hard to see as much blue on my phone but chiton is more comforting. If you can, remove and dip and recheck in 2-3 days and repeat if necessary. You will win this battle

 

[CCK_8814]

Hard to see as much blue on my phone but chiton is more comforting. If you can, remove and dip and recheck in 2-3 days and repeat if necessary. You will win this battle

I’m going to grab bayer after work and dip all my euphyllia which is about 12 50-100 head colonies & another 50ish heads in frags. I actually still have some interceptor if needed I could use.

 

[GrouperBait]

I’m going to grab bayer after work and dip all my euphyllia which is about 12 50-100 head colonies & another 50ish heads in frags. I actually still have some interceptor if needed I could use.

How did it go?

 

[CCK_8814]

How did it go?

No idea what the actual cause was. Lost probably 25 heads total. Was pretty upsetting but could have been much worse.

 

[GrouperBait]

No idea what the actual cause was. Lost probably 25 heads total. Was pretty upsetting but could have been much worse.

Sorry to hear that

 

[AquaOps1223]

I’m going to grab bayer after work and dip all my euphyllia which is about 12 50-100 head colonies & another 50ish heads in frags. I actually still have some interceptor if needed I could use.

What dips did you use? Or did you use interceptor?