No clue, id help plz

[rwreef]

I have been trying to figure our why my zoas are reducing in numbers. Maybe this guy is to blame? Any ideas what this is? Thank you!

 

[rwreef]

Another angle

 

[Steve and his Animals]

Looks like a species of Chiton. Primitive snails whose shells are similar to a pill bug's armor, overlapping plates. Usually harmless algae eaters.

 

[srobertb]

Or a stomatella?
Was it in or around your zoas? Do you have zoas the same color as the animal in question? There are nudibranches that will eat zoas. They’re identifiable because they absorb and use the pigments of the zoas they eat. So they’re not easy to spot but once you do, they’re very easy to identify as the culprit.

 

[rwreef]

Or a stomatella?
Was it in or around your zoas? Do you have zoas the same color as the animal in question? There are nudibranches that will eat zoas. They’re identifiable because they absorb and use the pigments of the zoas they eat. So they’re not easy to spot but once you do, they’re very easy to identify as the culprit.

Yes, it was on my zoa rock. I dip all corals before entering my tank. I have been checking early mornings to find potential culprits. My initial thought was possible stomatella for this guy. But he is white and overall brighter with black marks.

 

[srobertb]

Yes, it was on my zoa rock. I dip all corals before entering my tank. I have been checking early mornings to find potential culprits. My initial thought was possible stomatella for this guy. But he is white and overall brighter with black marks.

I’m torn. Shape says stomatella but I don’t see the little shell. All these tiny creatures come in so many patterns and shapes and sizes it’s so hard to tell. Are your zoas disappearing or melting away? Can you setup a time lapse camera with a red light to watch them overnight? I found a Eunice worm and a wandering clam this way. Just a thought.

 

[Fish Styx]

Not a stomatella. +1 Chiton.

 

[srobertb]

Not a stomatella. +1 Chiton.

My old eyes can’t make out the shell. A good way to tell is to annoy it and see if it runs or clamps down on the glass like a suction cup. Or the ever popular “poke it with a stick” to see if that’s a hard shell.

 

[Fish Styx]

My old eyes can’t make out the shell. A good way to tell is to annoy it and see if it runs or clamps down on the glass like a suction cup. Or the ever popular “poke it with a stick” to see if that’s a hard shell.

Every reefer should have a pokey stick in their arsenal of tools.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Yeah, that's a chiton.

 

[rwreef]

I agree Chiton!

Update tho...pulled a zoa colony and found this snail on a polyp. These guys have been happy for awhile but lately been closing up. Sundial snail?

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I’m torn. Shape says stomatella but I don’t see the little shell. All these tiny creatures come in so many patterns and shapes and sizes it’s so hard to tell. Are your zoas disappearing or melting away? Can you setup a time lapse camera with a red light to watch them overnight? I found a Eunice worm and a wandering clam this way. Just a thought.

Not a stomatella. Definitely a chiton, and a really pretty one at that! Algae eater.

 

[rwreef]

I agree Chiton!

Update tho...pulled a zoa colony and found this snail on a polyp. These guys have been happy for awhile but lately been closing up. Sundial snail?

Any thoughts in the snail found in my zoa?