Kleini Butterfly - aiptasia eating machine

[Aparker2005]

Well we've come to a point where we have to decide if we want a lot of beautiful zoas or this kleins. It's starting to really tear into my wife's favorite zoas.

We're torn as we know the aiptasia issue will likely return, but maybe now that they're gone mostly we could keep them at bay with F aiptasia?

Or give up on certain zoas and just keep it until it hits other corals?

Nothing can be easy in this hobby lol

 

[Aparker2005]

As much as I love this fish, we've temporarily moved it to the qt system until we decide what to do with it. It's SUCH a good aip killer, but my wife really loves her zoas

 

[Seansea]

Is he straight devouring or just nipping?

 

[Aparker2005]

Is he straight devouring or just nipping?

Was nipping, now it's him going by ripping them up slowly. They're all starting to close and missing pieces from them

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Was nipping, now it's him going by ripping them up slowly. They're all starting to close and missing pieces from them

Im in the same boat. Starting to nip at LPS also, mostly been munching at plays and some so as also Duncan's & candy cane has been closed all week. Howd you catch it? I'm zero for two between filefish and now the 'blue head' klein butterfly.

 

[Aparker2005]

Im in the same boat. Starting to nip at LPS also, mostly been munching at plays and some so as also Duncan's & candy cane has been closed all week. Howd you catch it? I'm zero for two between filefish and now the 'blue head' klein butterfly.

I honestly am not sure there is really a "blue head" species. I think they just simply have a blue hue on some, which mine does. I did notice a Duncan completely closed and was really huge before. I suspect it's this little guy as well. I really hate it because it's such a personable and pretty/active fish.

Not sure I'll be able to get rid of it unless we take it an hour and a half north of us to Little Rock. Very few salt people down in south Arkansas.

To catch it I got one of those critter carriers at Walmart and drilled holes in it. It also functions as our acclimation box. I just chased it (finally) into it and slammed the lid on it as fast as I could. Let the water drain out pretty good and then moved it down to the qt tank. Took a while but it worked.

It ate all but 2 aips that it can't get to, and I mean relentlessly. Our tank was covered in them. Our 20g reef is starting to get a few in it. Halfway tempted to let it clear a few of those up too. Much easier to catch in that tank, but neither can be permanent homes unfortunately either.

Our filefish disappeared recently, but also never touched an aiptasia or corals thankfully.

 

[subaru watxher]

Next time i'd say go with an Australian Stripey if you can find one over in the states, they are readily available here in Australia and devour aptasia and in my experience are mostly reef safe. (never once touched a zoa of mine)

I've had one before and it left everything of mine alone. i occasionally saw it nip at this ugly toadstool i had but i didn't mind as it didn't bother anything else ( i had alot of lps,sps,and softies) .multiple customers at the LFs i work at tell me about their stripeys and often the only thing ive heard them go after are acans, blastos and some brain corals. Plus their awesome looking fish, swim around all day non stop, and eat almost anything.

Live aquaria has them at about $170 usd which is an absolute ripp off compared to the $40 aud ($26.77 usd) we pay for them regularly here.

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

I honestly am not sure there is really a "blue head" species. I think they just simply have a blue hue on some, which mine does. I did notice a Duncan completely closed and was really huge before. I suspect it's this little guy as well. I really hate it because it's such a personable and pretty/active fish.

Not sure I'll be able to get rid of it unless we take it an hour and a half north of us to Little Rock. Very few salt people down in south Arkansas.

To catch it I got one of those critter carriers at Walmart and drilled holes in it. It also functions as our acclimation box. I just chased it (finally) into it and slammed the lid on it as fast as I could. Let the water drain out pretty good and then moved it down to the qt tank. Took a while but it worked.

It ate all but 2 aips that it can't get to, and I mean relentlessly. Our tank was covered in them. Our 20g reef is starting to get a few in it. Halfway tempted to let it clear a few of those up too. Much easier to catch in that tank, but neither can be permanent homes unfortunately either.

Our filefish disappeared recently, but also never touched an aiptasia or corals thankfully.

Agreed on the 'bluehead'. I was hoping it was a difference, but in the end it wasn't. it devoured the aiptasia and then went after everything else, lol. Similar experience as yours with the speed of aiptasia being devoured. I have a fish trap, going to trap it over the next few days. I'm feeling the same about it on the emotional side as it survived the hellacious lashing from the purple tang & sailfin after initial introduction. Its definitely a hardy fish.

 

[Seansea]

If you really like the fish then just dont keep zoas. There arena ton of other corals to keep too. I pretty much come to conclusion that acans are off the list for me with my bicolor but he is pretty cool so just no acans it is.

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Mine is out of the tank! He was terrorizing ALL the zoas and lps. Lost a multi head candy cane and two different colonys of duncans are a big question mark. Anyone local want a klein?!

 

[Aparker2005]

As suspected, aips are already coming back. I've hit as many as I can with F aiptasia, but I fear it won't be long until they're back like before.

I almost got a filefish yesterday. I love those fish and know they can nip corals, but ours before also never touched a single aiptasia.

A lot of times the wife and I really consider just going with a fowlr system. There's so many back and forths, and loss of money with corals.

Then we could keep most of the fish we want and not have to worry with corals.

But, the corals are so pretty. And the wife loves her zoas. So here we are again lol

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Good luck with the file fish, it was a bust for me as well. I'm waiting on my hawkfishe(s) to age out and peppermint shrimp will be regular residents again.

 

[Aparker2005]

Good luck with the file fish, it was a bust for me as well. I'm waiting on my hawkfishe(s) to age out and peppermint shrimp will be regular residents again.

Our peppermints do absolutely nothing. Of course we only had 6 in a 125. Maybe that's the issue?

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

Our peppermints do absolutely nothing. Of course we only had 6 in a 125. Maybe that's the issue?

Its a specific variety of peppermint thats an aiptasia eradicator.

 

[Aparker2005]

Its a specific variety of peppermint thats an aiptasia eradicator.

We apparently got those, but no success. Maybe I need another direct link lol

 

[flashsmith]

Set up a 20 gallon for a zoa garden/nem tank and go fish only in your big tank. I'm done with coral I think too. I have plenty doing good but it's just so expensive for the coral and then dosing/testing easily runs me $100 a month. I'm in the process of switching over my 80g and 170g. Maybe I need a Kleini or two to speed up the process..

 

[Aparker2005]

Set up a 20 gallon for a zoa garden/nem tank and go fish only in your big tank. I'm done with coral I think too. I have plenty doing good but it's just so expensive for the coral and then dosing/testing easily runs me $100 a month. I'm in the process of switching over my 80g and 170g. Maybe I need a Kleini or two to speed up the process..

This is what we're almost thinking. Our 20g reef is doing very well, so we could still keep coral and do a fowlr with the 125, and everyone wins

 

[Aparker2005]

Plus in this economy, it's getting harder and harder, and far more spread out to spend so much on this stuff unfortunately. 125 Fowlr would be a lot easier and the 20 would look incredible with all the zoa color

 

[Seansea]

Fowlr way easier altho can be problematic in some ways depending on what kind of fish you keep. In fighting and new additions and things.

You can still have corals tho. My old 150 fowlr had some corals in it that pretty much no fish touched except rock knock overs or if something happened to be crawling next to or on the coral. And if they did munch didnt matter cuz the stuff grew so fast. Gsp, xenia leathers mushrooms all good to go. Can keep lower lights and plenty of nutrients in water for them to explode.

 

[Aparker2005]

Wife still wants her zoa colonies she waited and waited to grow. The huge rock that has her big colonies on it can't be moved.

We'll see what we come up with lol