Something chewed on my montipora

[Leadfooted]

Another victim but i caught the culprit in the act....dang red leg hermit

So you're convinced it was a red legged hermit?!!

 

[kenandmoose2]

Time will tell but i caught the hermit in that duncan munching on it. The crab is in the fuge now. If other stuff gets munched on ill continue the search. No big alk swings that i know of. Just the every day 10ml dose to maintain ~9 dkh.

 

[Leadfooted]

Think I'll pull all my hermits in the fuge now just in case

 

[tom reilly]

I have a piece of monti that has been nawed on and I'm wondering if this could have been one of my long spine erchins. Has anyone had a problem with them doing this? I have had one in the tank for about 2 years now and never had a problem with it. I just recently added a second one to the display. Found this this morning when i got up.

May have just been bumped?

 

[Best Fish-Jake]

Think I'll pull all my hermits in the fuge now just in case

No need.. this very seldom happens with smaller hermits. If you have any larger than ~1.5 inches then you may want to consider separating them from sessile invertebrates as they tend to become more aggressive the larger they grow.

 

[Best Fish-Jake]

I'm still not convinced that the hermit ate off of kenandmoose's monti and/ or chalice.. unless the 6 line developed a taste for coral, none of the listed livestock would inflict damage like that

 

[kenandmoose2]

I'm still not convinced that the hermit ate off of kenandmoose's monti and/ or chalice.. unless the 6 line developed a taste for coral, none of the listed livestock would inflict damage like that

I caught the hermit in the act chowing down on my duncan. Hes been moved so now time will tell i guess

 

[kenandmoose2]

So it appears that i have a broken long spine erchine.......so the story....i bought a sand sifter star fish the other day. I put him in the tank all is good until i look over and my long spine is chew one of its legs off. I seperate the 2 of them and hope the best for the star thinking i may have to remove it if it dies. The star seems to be fine this morning doing its thing in the sand and know one is bugging it. Moving foward to about 5 minutes ago i was watching same ******* erchine moving across my chalice thinking to myself that **** better not be making that his lunch. Well ill be danged if that wasnt exactly what he was doing. So he joined the hermit in the fuge he can eat cheto and a d......... i have 3 of these long spines and have never had a problem with them. The one that i caught in the act is the one i have had the longest so im confused about why. Anyway for those of you who have been following along that where this is at today. Ill have to watch number 3 and move him up to the fuge too if i see something funny.

 

[Best Fish-Jake]

Can you post some pics of the urchin in question? Urchins are herbivorous so understandably, I'm still a bit skeptical

 

[kenandmoose2]

Pictures of the urchin??? Sure its just your run of the mill long spine though..... i watched it eat the chalice and star fish. I understand they are herbivores but mine is a murderer lol.

 

[cmcoker]

I believe @alanbetiger had a long spine urchin munching his SPS at one point.. So it does happen, his was fairly large iirc

 

[alanbetiger]

I believe @alanbetiger had a long spine urchin munching his SPS at one point.. So it does happen, his was fairly large iirc

Yeah I had a long spine in a 190 gallon tank and literally about a foot in diameter. It didn't fit in a 5 gallon bucket fully extended. Chowed down on multiple SPS. You could physically hear it crunching. I watched it happen over a few weeks before I was convinced it was the primary problem instead of going and eating damaged SPS by some other culprit. It just ate the flesh and left the stoney skeleton behind. So that first picture of the montipora, I can't tell if that is a chunk of the skeleton missing as well. If something else broken it off then definitely the urchin could come behind and eat it. But the urchin wouldn't of eaten the skeleton.