Nuclear green palythoa predators (natural - besides manual removal?)

[User1]

So....any known reef safe (lol) predator that enjoys Nuclear Green Palythoa's? I've kept them in check for a long while but recently being down with a hip replacement and post op recovery they decided to make a come back. Manual removal before but I'm off limits of a ladder - the joys of owning a 30" tall tank.

The Bubble tips do not seem to phase them at all. Kenya Tree, Xenia, nothing natural. Think I'm going to be stuck with manual removal outside removing some rocks. Pardon the crappy heavy blue photo but it was taken early morning. I've texted Mother Nature since I know she has something to keep them in check in the wild but so far she has ignored me.

My goal this weekend is to come up with a plan on these and a 100 foot or so hose for saltwater and top off water work. Latter is probably going to get done. The Palythoa's probably not.

 

[fishguy242]

hi,yeah ya got me on that one ,not sure anything eats those toxic little slimers

 

[ScottB]

I swear those things have a half life of a thousand years -- even in my neighbors back yard. When we humans are done here, palys, rats and roaches will rule the seas and lands. IMO, chuck the rock. If there are some reachable stragglers, you can try to nuke them with kalk paste.

Of course you are correct. In the wild there must be some creature that has evolved to the point of preying on them but I could not begin to guess what kind of animal it is. And it probably ain't "reef-safe".

 

[User1]

Yeah. I thought I read a specific crab of all things but I can't find that reference anywhere for the life of me. Search I shall continue

Regarding tossing the rocks - or at least considering removing them to clear. That is a strong possibility but then I'm losing the biological filter and age of the rock. Could be a fair trade off though if I place it in the sump. Good suggestion. The only rock that I couldn't is the one that has the rose bubble tips.

Alright - let me ponder rock removal a bit and see what that might do.

Thanks!

 

[User1]

I found the crab reference - orange gaudy clown crab. Time to do some reading but sounds like they eat zoa's and pally's.

Don't see any for sale. Last reference I saw was for KP Aquatics. I'll send them a message.

 

[ScottB]

Yeah. I thought I read a specific crab of all things but I can't find that reference anywhere for the life of me. Search I shall continue

Regarding tossing the rocks - or at least considering removing them to clear. That is a strong possibility but then I'm losing the biological filter and age of the rock. Could be a fair trade off though if I place it in the sump. Good suggestion. The only rock that I couldn't is the one that has the rose bubble tips.

Alright - let me ponder rock removal a bit and see what that might do.

Thanks!

I couldn't tell for sure (by the picture) how much rock is affected -- and I agree with the value of old established rock. I removed about 20% of mine along with a few pounds of over grown monti cap, slimer etc. My display was "noisy" for months after that. Had to deal with dinos, cyano, and some strange algaes I'd never seen before. Nothing fatal, just five months of the uglies for a 5 year old tank.

So yeah, I agree it is a tough trade if you are losing a material amount of rock. Do you have any sense of the toxicity level of those particular palys? Manual mode with paly is hard enough when you know they aren't too toxic. If you could confirm a low level and take some precautions (masks, goggles, gloves, ventilation) you could go at them with a chisel or (more risk from aerosols) diamond saw.

 

[TriggerFinger]

I found the crab reference - orange gaudy clown crab. Time to do some reading but sounds like they eat zoa's and pally's.

Don't see any for sale. Last reference I saw was for KP Aquatics. I'll send them a message.

Reef cleaners carries them too but he is out of stock at the moment.

Out of Season: Gaudy Clown Crab

Gaudy Clown Crab Out of Season The Gaudy Clown crab is a beautiful crab that eats Palythoas and concentrates their poison to make themselves toxic to predators.

www.reefcleaners.org

 

[User1]

I couldn't tell for sure (by the picture) how much rock is affected -- and I agree with the value of old established rock. I removed about 20% of mine along with a few pounds of over grown monti cap, slimer etc. My display was "noisy" for months after that. Had to deal with dinos, cyano, and some strange algaes I'd never seen before. Nothing fatal, just five months of the uglies for a 5 year old tank.

So yeah, I agree it is a tough trade if you are losing a material amount of rock. Do you have any sense of the toxicity level of those particular palys? Manual mode with paly is hard enough when you know they aren't too toxic. If you could confirm a low level and take some precautions (masks, goggles, gloves, ventilation) you could go at them with a chisel or (more risk from aerosols) diamond saw.

I do not know their toxicity level. When I've manually removed them prior I used a mask and shoulder length gloves with the window open. Sort of ladder, glove up, crack open window, reach in with forceps, pick a few off, place in bowl of water, repeat for about 5 minutes or so then toss in garden waste container.

Interesting on the chisel and saw. Sort of like peeling fruit but taking a bit of the rock surface layer. Would be better than using the forceps as they can leave a bit of the base which they grow back. Thanks for that tip. I hadn't considered that one.

Also the rock - the tank is 2 years into its upgrade and the base rock was dry pukani. Took a long while to get established. In fact I just busted a rock in half to break the shade it was casting and as you said above in your case I'm seeing junk on that rock I've not seen for a long while. It really is amazing how it reacts. Great info, thanks.

I do have a refugium that I've yet to setup that I was going to use to grow macro algae for my tangs to eat. Instead of algae I could work on the rock manually removing and place it in there to recover and monitor for algae. This way remove them outside rather than in the house.

Ok - another option. Thanks!

 

[User1]

Reef cleaners carries them too but he is out of stock at the moment.

Out of Season: Gaudy Clown Crab

Gaudy Clown Crab Out of Season The Gaudy Clown crab is a beautiful crab that eats Palythoas and concentrates their poison to make themselves toxic to predators.

www.reefcleaners.org

Thanks. I didn't see they carried them. I set up an alert and will also send a email message!

 

[ScottB]

I do not know their toxicity level. When I've manually removed them prior I used a mask and shoulder length gloves with the window open. Sort of ladder, glove up, crack open window, reach in with forceps, pick a few off, place in bowl of water, repeat for about 5 minutes or so then toss in garden waste container.

Interesting on the chisel and saw. Sort of like peeling fruit but taking a bit of the rock surface layer. Would be better than using the forceps as they can leave a bit of the base which they grow back. Thanks for that tip. I hadn't considered that one.

Also the rock - the tank is 2 years into its upgrade and the base rock was dry pukani. Took a long while to get established. In fact I just busted a rock in half to break the shade it was casting and as you said above in your case I'm seeing junk on that rock I've not seen for a long while. It really is amazing how it reacts. Great info, thanks.

I do have a refugium that I've yet to setup that I was going to use to grow macro algae for my tangs to eat. Instead of algae I could work on the rock manually removing and place it in there to recover and monitor for algae. This way remove them outside rather than in the house.

Ok - another option. Thanks!

How about a little background on that image in your avatar or whatever. C130 or something a little sleeker? Who else does 4 props these days?

 

[blasterman]

The pic of the tank the OP posted are not nuclear greens. They are the annoying green implosion paly.

Nuclear greens won't spawn around your tank in random places places and are much slower growers. Green implosions however can be a PITA, and while they don't sting or engage in biological warfare they won't give up territory to non aggressive corals and they migrate around your tank. If you have a tank of aggressive lps or rhodactis shrooms that can hold their own green implosions aren't an issue.

Reef stores like to sell them under the name nuclear greens, but they are distinctly different plays.

Green implosions aren't toxic and I've read several white papers concluding they don't carry palytoxin. It's their more olive colored, translucent cousin that's the dangerous one.

A starving trigger or large angel will nibble at them, but that's it. An insulin syringe and vinegar or kalk paste injected into them will kill them. Since they can't retreat into rocks implosions are easier to kill this way than aiptasia. However, that's a lot of green im0losions to kill off.

 

[User1]

How about a little background on that image in your avatar or whatever. C130 or something a little sleeker? Who else does 4 props these days?

You are correct. It is a C-130 - one of our birds over Lake Tahoe. I'm retired Air National Guard. I spent 4 years active duty stationed in Okinawa aircraft armament on F-15's. Great place. However, my next tour was in Europe so separated. Fighter wings, well, you go TDY a lot and it got too much. Anyway after getting out I found I missed it, joined the reserves, too much like active duty, so joined air national guard . In any case RF4's then we retired that air frame and picked up C-130's.

Who else uses props these days - awesome question and I am not honestly sure. Navy and marines use Osprey's. Navy still has a few P3's flying while they migration to P8's. C-130's. I think there is a trainer in inventory still. Oh - possibly OV10's still.

Four props though - Navy P3 and C130's.

 

[NashobaTek]

Thank you for your service, hope you have a speedy recovery.

 

[ScottB]

You are correct. It is a C-130 - one of our birds over Lake Tahoe. I'm retired Air National Guard. I spent 4 years active duty stationed in Okinawa aircraft armament on F-15's. Great place. However, my next tour was in Europe so separated. Fighter wings, well, you go TDY a lot and it got too much. Anyway after getting out I found I missed it, joined the reserves, too much like active duty, so joined air national guard . In any case RF4's then we retired that air frame and picked up C-130's.

Who else uses props these days - awesome question and I am not honestly sure. Navy and marines use Osprey's. Navy still has a few P3's flying while they migration to P8's. C-130's. I think there is a trainer in inventory still. Oh - possibly OV10's still.

Four props though - Navy P3 and C130's.

My Mom was 36 years civilian DOD for USAF out of Kelly, Wright Patt and the Pentagon. Logistic and maintenance support contracts for overseas fighter aircraft. My Dad was active MP for USAF 14 years in Seoul, Osaka & Tokyo.

 

[User1]

My Mom was 36 years civilian DOD for USAF out of Kelly, Wright Patt and the Pentagon. Logistic and maintenance support contracts for overseas fighter aircraft. My Dad was active MP for USAF 14 years in Seoul, Osaka & Tokyo.

Really cool. So always around DOD/Mil families. MP's deploy a lot especially overseas. I never made it to Tokyo.

 

[TriggerFinger]

Were you able to find one of those clown crabs @saf1?

 

[User1]

Were you able to find one of those clown crabs @saf1?

I found two sources but neither had them available. KP aquatics came up. I reached out and they said they haven't had them in a long while. Also they didn't know much about them so didn't really continue stocking. The info you provided was the best so far. I reached out to reef cleaners and they said they get in about 10 a year but no eta.

I went ahead and did a stock notification alert. I was going to reach out again in a bit and see if maybe I could put a deposit or a waiting list. Reef cleaners is the best chance it seems at this point. I've pulled a few more out manually but it isn't something I want to continue to do

It is pretty interesting in that there is not a lot of info on these crabs. Maybe they do not do well in captivity either by temperature or food. Would be interesting to see how many polyps they eat in a day for longer term success. Or do they just go balls out

Anyway have a possible known predator but none in stock. Working through some other things with the tank like cable management. Not going to lie - I have a fire hazard on my hands due to letting it sit too long. Gave myself a month to get it in order and I let the first week pass - lol.

Just a lazy reefer I am. Hope all is well out your way!

 

[TriggerFinger]

I’ve seen one of these crabs at a local store a couple months ago. I was surprised how big it was, about the size of a small lime length wise. I was on a mission to buy a red serpent star that day and didn’t get to ask anything about it. I was on reef cleaners today and saw it again so I was just curious. Hope you are able to find one! And get your wires cleaned up! I need to do the same thing...no judgement here