Saw some little bite marks all over my acros....!!!

[rock_lobster]

Then I saw the little translucent purple worms. Not many they are difficult to see. So I took a turkey baster to them and the little worms shot off everywhere probably 20+ on 6 different small colonies. My clowns were in paradise they gobbled them up in seconds. Okay so I thought why do I need to treat them? I'll just blast them daily. I've been doing this for 3 days so far first day 20+, second day saw maybe 6, third day just 2 and today I blasted and couldnt find a single one. Acros already looking much better full polyp extension. So my question if if I just blast them once a day for a few weeks will they all be gone? It would be nearly impossible to get all the colonies out of the tank.

 

[reid429]

Eggs are somewhere if it is indeed flatworms and this will continue

 

[rock_lobster]

Yep but if I keep at it with the turkey baster they will just fly off once they hatch.?

 

[TUSI]

Look for eggs on the dead tissue underneath with a flash light. If you can't take the colony out then put glue over the eggs and continue doing what you are doing. All you need is one to go to another colony and lay eggs and it multiply. Blow all corals that you don't see bite marks just in case

 

[rock_lobster]

Look for eggs on the dead tissue underneath with a flash light. If you can't take the colony out then put glue over the eggs and continue doing what you are doing. All you need is one to go to another colony and lay eggs and it multiply. Blow all corals that you don't see bite marks just in case

I dont see any dead tissue they all look healthy. I can just see a few bite marks under some branches.

 

[TUSI]

I dont see any dead tissue they all look healthy. I can just see a few bite marks under some branches.

Look closely, if the are aefw there will be eggs under a branch or something away from light or flow direction

 

[Eric G]

You will never eradicate them in tank. you will be basting forever.

 

[rock_lobster]

blasted all 6 today. Fish were upset not a single little booger.

 

[Tank2379]

If eggs are present doesn't matter if you're basting away. They'll come back you'll have to either keep and eye out the next few days. They multiply fast. Eggs can be anywhere even under the plug or inside a piece of rock close by for them to hatch and come back with vengeance. If I where you I would start dipping every acro piece you have and inspect every piece possible.

 

[Dowtish]

You can blast them off forever and still maintain. But they will never grow and color up as well as they could. At some point when your schedule doesnt allow constant blasting, and it will happen, the worms will explode in population. Thats when youll see fading and possible losses out of nowhere. Trust me, I am speaking from experience.

If its just 6 colonies of acro in the entire tank, why not pull them off, scrape all the eggs, and put them through a dip regiment?

 

[Eric G]

You can blast them off forever and still maintain. But they will never grow and color up as well as they could. At some point when your schedule doesnt allow constant blasting, and it will happen, the worms will explode in population. Thats when youll see fading and possible losses out of nowhere. Trust me, I am speaking from experience.

If its just 6 colonies of acro in the entire tank, why not pull them off, scrape all the eggs, and put them through a dip regiment?

+1 im also speaking from experience and I would go one step further. If its only six colonies I would toss them save the headache. you miss one scheduled dip and dont break the egg cycle your back at square one.

 

[rock_lobster]

+1 im also speaking from experience and I would go one step further. If its only six colonies I would toss them save the headache. you miss one scheduled dip and dont break the egg cycle your back at square one.

Six very expensive colonies! and they are all incrusted on an enormous rock. I'm fairly certain they would die if I tried to do the whole quarantine thing. I am amazed that they just showed up out of nowhere... Havent added anything to the tank if over 3 months and no acropora in over a year. I'm guessing they were introduced with a zoa frag 3 months ago seems strange that it would take that long for them to multiply.

 

[Eric G]

Yea it sucks I had a 300 filled in completely with colony's finally threw in the towel threw everything away. Now all coral goes through a strict quarantine process for three months before it goes in show tank. I would rather loose hundreds of dollars in corals than put another coral with AEFW in show tank

 

[rock_lobster]

Blasted them again today. Not a single AEFW fish were very disappointed. guessing some eggs should be hatching soon.

 

[TUSI]

thats good news

 

[rock_lobster]

Uh so apparently AEFW eggs take 21 days to hatch.... So I guess Ill need to be prepared for new batch of worms soon.

 

[rock_lobster]

Well its been well over a month and not a single trace of AEFW. Apparently they have been irradiated from blasting them off with the turkey baster. Havent even done it since April 10th and all 7 of my colonies are growing faster than ever with no signs of AEFW.

 

[TUSI]

Well its been well over a month and not a single trace of AEFW. Apparently they have been irradiated from blasting them off with the turkey baster. Havent even done it since April 10th and all 7 of my colonies are growing faster than ever with no signs of AEFW.

That's great news

 

[Graffiti Spot]

Hopefully you don't see anymore but I would guess they will show up again. They are sneaky jerks and are very hard to see when they are just hatched. Normally in the this situation people I know and me have experienced them looking like they are gone for 2 or 3 months then they come back when your guard is down.
Only way I know to get rid of them is dipping everything for up to 6 or 8 weeks. Did you ever see eggs or take colonies out to dip or look for eggs?