I hope not, but is it AEFW?

goody · May 24, 2010

All of my coral other than this one tri color acro are doing great. Over the last week I have noticed this one turn more white. I took a picture (below) and after zooming in, I noticed they looked more like bite marks. Is this AEFW? If so, I have read these are much harder to get rid of than red bugs. What would be your suggestions for treatment? I have a couple of nice shipment coming in and I don't want them getting AEFW if that is what this is. :cry:

Breakin Newz · May 24, 2010

Looks like it, check for eggs around the dead base which would indicate AEFW's.... it is deffiantly either AEFW's or RedBugs no doubt!

I'd put my money on it being AEFW's though...

ddiver · May 24, 2010

looks like AEFW bite marks to me...they sure do love tricolors..

soccerbag · May 24, 2010

AEFW for sure - sorry to break it to you. That piece is eaten up big time. I would try and postpone the shipments and try and get your current corals back in order before adding new ones. May be easier said than done. There was another reefer on here who is going through the same thing. I'll find the thread and post it shortly. You can also check out melev's website. I will post that link as well. Instead of being redundant on this thread, it may be easier to get up to speed and read the recommendations that have already been laid out in other threads (that I will link here).

Good short thread to read here....
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/f48/pest-id-please-42474.html

Melev's article...
http://www.melevsreef.com/aefw.html

Just because you don't see bit marks on your other acros doesn't mean they are not on there. The tank is likely infested - hopefully you are catching it early before the population gets out of control. I would read these links and come back here with some questions. We're happy to help however we can.

firsttime · May 24, 2010

+1 AEFW for sure

w0r1d5m1n3 · May 24, 2010

try pointing a powerhead at that acro and see what flies off.

goody · May 24, 2010

CRAP! CRAP! CRAP! I have one shipment already on the way and emailed the other seller. I am going to start setting up another tank tonight, take out this one frag and dip it in Revive. Are they easily visible if I turn off my powerheads and use a turkey baster to blast off and suck up? Will this do more harm than good if all other coral look good and I see no signs of them?

soccerbag · May 24, 2010

Will not do any harm to blast them off. Just get as many as you can with the baster (out of the tank). Rapid, short bursts with the baster works best. Get the whole coral too, not just the base or infected areas. While you're in the tank, go ahead and baste the others to see what the damage is. This can also be accomplished with a strong powerhead (MJ1200 or stronger).

schminksbro · May 25, 2010

Won't blowing them off with a baster or powerhead simply aid them in spreading to other acros? If the tank is not infested and the outbreak is isolated to the one acro it would seem to me blowing them around is a bad idea.

soccerbag · May 25, 2010

It may, but it you're able to get them with the baster as they come off, it certainly can't hurt. I'm sure there are eggs somewhere. The chance that they are completely isolated on one acro is slim IMO. In order to completely erradicate them, a quarantine tank will need to be setup for weeks (with all traces of acros out of the display). If the tank has been infested, putting a few in the water column won't hurt - and the fish will likely pick them out of the water column as well.

goody · May 25, 2010

Craig, thanks for the advice as well as others. I pulled out and dipped 11 frags. Then when I blasted a blue millepora in the tank that is encrusted on my wall. I was shocked at how many AEFW came off. I've done some quick reading tonight and will read more, but between this problem and selling my triathlon bike, I haven't had much time. Does Revive also kill the eggs? And I've included a picture of what I thought were huge AEFW. It's amazing I never noticed them with how much time I spend staring at my tank. Will it do any good to add Flatworm Exit to the tank?

iani · May 25, 2010

Flatworm exit will not kill AEFW's. Flatworm exit works on planaria (red "flatworms").

Znut Reefer · May 25, 2010

Nothing will kill the eggs either, you have to remove them by hand. Get a large magnifying glass it will help you spot them between dips.

jaslapp1 · May 25, 2010

You won't be able to see aefw they blend in with the coral. You can only see them when u pull the coral out and hold it up to a
metal halide. I'd recommend tossing anything that is heavily infested and only keep a tip that is clean. Any acro that has them def chop off it's base that's where the eggs get laid. Good luck aefw are a pain. I bought some acros from a lfs recently and I tossed all the acros I bought because I found a few aefw. Not worth the hastle or risk of investing others even if u have a qt tank IMO.

stunreefer · May 25, 2010

If you any new corals to the tank, they will (more than likely) become infested.

All of your current Acroporas are likely infested, or most definitely could be, and should be treated as such.

This is one pest (IMO) that has a "do it once, do it right" protocol to follow.

ctxmonitor · May 25, 2010

Wow, the mention of the word flatworm give me chill. Hope you will be able to successfully rid them out of your tank. Did you usually dip your SPS corals in revive before you introduce or usually just a temp acclimate and put in?

goody · May 25, 2010

ctxmonitor said:
Wow, the mention of the word flatworm give me chill. Hope you will be able to successfully rid them out of your tank. Did you usually dip your SPS corals in revive before you introduce or usually just a temp acclimate and put in?

I dip my coral in Revive before introducing to display tank. I wish I could get a QT, then I'd dip and leave in QT for awhile before putting in DT. Since Revive does not kill the eggs, what are my options, other than cutting the coral? I've read people "scrape" them off, but what are they using, are they easily removable, and do I need a magnifying glass to see them?

Bigevill1 · May 26, 2010

Dip and blast them at the same time every 5 days. This should get the adults off after the egss hatch. Do that for a 3-4 weeks to be in the clear. Even that isnt 100%

Hammmerhead · May 26, 2010

I am dealing with this right now also Goody and it is a horrible process I must say. Several people here have been a huge help offering plenty of info. Read up on what you dip with, some dips are much more harsh than others and can instantly brown out your SPS. I would recommend getting a couple of wrasses to help eat the worms as well. My third dip in 11 days is coming up tonight and it seems that their population is decreasing from the amount of bites my corals have been showing. Get a QT set up ASAP. The sooner you get on these guys the sooner the population will start to fall. I would not blast the corals in the QT tank as it spreads them and is difficult to actually find them and determine new bites and eaten areas on your infected corals. You want them to stay on the corals so as many as possible will make it to the dip bucket. A rinse bucket is also good after the dipping and I have found worms in my rinse bucket. Remember, dipping wont kill them, it just makes them turn loose of the coral so this process has to be repeated several times by blasting and swishing the corals in the dip. From what I have seen I am looking at dipping for 2 months minimum just to be safe and I hope that I can actually get them gone in two months. The info I have gathered is that they will starve in 5 days without any SPS to eat on so remove all your SPS from the main tank. The eggs hatch in 15 days so the cycle will have to be repeated for 8-12 weeks just to be safe. I wouldnt wish these guys on my worst enemy, man they are bad!