My reef tank is driving me crazy

[pup]

Hello all, I have a RSM 250 that has been running for about 6 months. This is my third reef tank and at this point I feel like I've learned next to nothing... Anyway I wanted to post a thread as I've had an insane day with it. First I noticed some kind of Eucinid worm in my rockwork. I watched it grab a small Cerith snail and pull it into it's lair. Lucky for the snail it was a bit too big and it escaped. The worm grabbed it two or three times. I tried setting a trap with a bit of food on a skewer. I actually was able to feel the worm grab the skewer, it was strong. The other part of my trap was a pair of scissors, I hoped to cut its head off (I've read this is a bad idea after the fact as they can revive themselves from a bit of themselves). Anyway I was not fast enough, I guess the hairs on the worm alert it to danger, they are faster than I am. In the process I destroyed part of my rockwork...the worm won today.

In that same rock I have a gorilla crab...I've managed to stab it in the head once and it's still alive...

After lights out I saw a brittle star I put in about 3 mos ago. It was the first time I've seen it's full body since introducing it. Well about 3 mins into watching it I watched one of my emerald crabs go ham on it. It was serisously like Godzilla vs King Kong for a sec. The crab grabbed one of the starfish's arms and just started chewing the **** out of it. I intervened with some nori and the crab let it go. Seriously it was one of the wildest things i've ever seen, the crab just picked the whole starfish up by the tentacle and started eating it.

Frankly the starfish seemed totally fine after it was let go. I watched it eat a few pellets afterward.

So, the eucinid and the gorilla crab are sharing the the same rock. I do have a few sps corals attached to the rock but I think I'm going to do a freshwater dip to hopefully drive them out. What do you all think? This has been one stressful day!

edit: and now I can see a snail that I cannot identify, it looks like a cerith with a flanged shell and some some of chiton I think. the chiton looking thing is totally white, actually looks like a mix of a chiton and a limpet. what a hobby eh?

 

[l8_apex_it]

FWIW, mine drives me crazy too. Your sounds more entertaining though. Who needs TV?

 

[pup]

It's been a wild day, I prefer calm ones! It's like we have a double full moon or something.

 

[cmcoker]

Mayne look into shooting club soda into the hole of the worm, think I read that some where might be worth a little research. I don't think the Sps would appreciate the freshwater dip.
And we need pics, whatever you decide

 

[pup]

Yeah I tried to get a pic of the worm but it wouldn't cooperate. Looks like some sort of eucinid though. It has four tentacle like attachments on its head, those tentacles locked onto the snails shell and it pulled it into the hole. The worm appears to be reddish and white stripes. I haven't been able to locate an exact picture online so I could be mistaken in my id.

I saw someone talking about club soda online earlier today but the details were scant at best. Anyone ever done it? I'm wondering if there is anything to really worry about.

 

[cmcoker]

I Googled, club soda pest removal reef, found this post on that other forum, titled Eucinid worm removal (I think) :
"I got mine out yesterday. Traps do not work. Steve Weast from the Oregon Reef told me traps are a waste of time. Steve pulled two worms out of his tank, one was 5ft and the other 7ft. OMG He told me there tail usually doesn't leave the burrow. Only way to remove it is to find the rock it burrows in and remove the rock. Thank you Steve. I know it sucks but trust me well worth it. These worms can grow very large, mine started eating expensive acros. Not cool. We as reefers put all this time, energy, and money into creating an environment that will support these beatiful acropora not create gourmet meals for a worm.

Here is how you do it. Stake out the tank at night with a red flash light. I used a red flashlight and a couple of clip-on desk lamps with red bulbs in them. Light the tank up nice and good. It took me several nights to find its home. Be patient.

Now do what you have to do to get the rock out. Me I had to cut coral that had fused the rock in place. Pull the rock out, please use gloves, us a syringe and inject Club Soda into it's lair. LeslieH works at The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles. She is an expert in worms you can find her here on Reef Central. She told me to use club soda and boy does it work. After a few injections into the hole it crawled out of there fairly quickly. Thank you Leslie.

After he crawled out I started to inspect the rock to make sure it was safe to put back in. I saw another one. *** I injected more club soda in and kind of pushed it out. When it dropped out I noticed it didn't have a head. I couldn't believe it. It left its tail behind to regenerate into a new worm. What an incredible survival mechanism.

Everyone who has one remove it. They might be harmless at first but as they get older their appetite changes and they start munching on coral. Trust me you want no parts of this. Get it out as soon as possible. "

Club soda does lower alkalinity, so best to do outside of tank I would think. There were several links from that search I did

 

[pup]

thanks man. I think I'll try this on my next water change. Does that sound like a good plan? I could use water that I pull out during a water change and try the club soda. I'm wondering if it might be a better idea to migrate my sps's and freshwater dip the rock? I figure the second option would also drive the gorilla crab out of the rock. thanks for the respons cmcoker.

 

[trido]

With a rock like that I think I'd skip the FW dip and dump it straight into a vat of muriatic acid or bleach.

 

[pup]

how long would you expose it like that trido? would I be able to go from the muriatic acid/bleach bath to back in the tank? thanks for the advice.

 

[twilliard]

Also try peroxide
Its and oxidizer and nothing likes it.

 

[pup]

what would your process be twilliard? thanks for the help.

 

[twilliard]

what would your process be twilliard? thanks for the help.

Oh just the same process, find the home and fill it with peroxide.
It wont change anything about your chemistry when the rock goes back in.

 

[pup]

I was planning on isolating the rock and trying the peroxide, would you blast the peroxide in with a turkey baster or syringe etc? thanks. I'd like to kill the crab and the worm on the same dose if possible.

 

[twilliard]

If you have a big syringe or you can baste it
Just make sure it goes in the hole
Should come right out before the peroxide kills them

 

[trido]

how long would you expose it like that trido? would I be able to go from the muriatic acid/bleach bath to back in the tank? thanks for the advice.

It depends on the size of your tank. I recently dipped 70% of my display tank rocks in acid to kill off the majanos. I took them out, dipped them in acid, rinsed them in the garden hose, let them dry for an hour and added them straight back into the tank. I have a huge system.
How long you dip the rock depends on the strength of the solution you dip it in
If you bleach one rock. Make sure to rinse the holy heck out of it and then soak it in RO full of dechlorinator over night if possible after the initial dip. You need to scrub off as much coraline and sponges before and after the dip.
If you dip it in acid it should be as easy as dip, scrub, rinse and then put it into RO and then back into the tank.

I say all this assuming you dont have a 20G tank and this is the largest rock in it.

 

[pup]

I haven't dealt with the worm/crab yet but tonight I saw a peppermint shrimp going ham on a torch coral so I banished his butt to the sump. What a relaxing hobby :/ I would definitely not consider pep shrimp to be reef safe, this isn't he first time I've seen one going after and lps coral.