tylerczubachowski
Community Member
This thing has grown in my live rock since I got my tank a month ago. I think it looks pretty and a very cool addition to my tank. Anyone know what this is and if it is harmful?
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tylerczubachowski
Community Member
encrustingacro
2500 Club Member
That’s aiptasia. Use F-Aiptasia to kill it.
tsouth
Valuable Member
Hey Tyler, hope you're well! This is known as Aiptasia. It looks to have grown very well indeed! Unfortunately these are frowned upon in the reef hobby. They are known to pack a very powerful punch and can sting neighboring corals, alongside multiplying incredibly fast.
There are many solutions across this forum that will guide you towards removing it if you wish to do so. Good luck!
There are many solutions across this forum that will guide you towards removing it if you wish to do so. Good luck!
ScottJ
Well-Known Member
Looks like at least 2 of them. If you can remove the rock they're on, you can deal with them better. like just let the rock dry out. Lemon juice killed a couple for me. Or seal them in with super glue.
tylerczubachowski
Community Member
Wow I didn’t expect it to be a bad thing. I just noticed the second one too. I was reading that peppermint shrimp are a natural way to kill them. Instead of super glueing, can I just pull them out with tweezers?
encrustingacro
2500 Club Member
Using lemon juice alone will probably spread the aiptasia as it doesn’t kill the babies.
If you want to seal them, spray it with a kalkwasser solution and then immediately seal them. Using super glue will probably take too long. Seal them with coral putty. You can also use F Aiptasia, which is an all in one solution, to cover it up.
encrustingacro
2500 Club Member
I don’t think that will work. You will pull the head out, but the foot will still be attached, and it will grow back. Also, aiptasia release babies when stressed.
tylerczubachowski
Community Member
So I just found another one and there is 3 on the same rock. I am going to remove it completely from the tank because that’s not good.
ScottJ
Well-Known Member
It was on the stem of a candy coral, actually. I took him out of the tank and bathed the stem in lemon juice with a qtip staying away from the flesh of the coral. It was all I had, worked, though
ScottJ
Well-Known Member
Probably the best thing to do. Keep an eye out to see if they crop up someplace else. Hopefully you got it.
tylerczubachowski
Community Member
I just found this thing growing in the back of my tank, is this a baby of it?
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king aiptasia
Well-Known Member
he is pretty, and he is definitely aiptasia
here is one of my grand specimens as an example of how they can end up looking
tylerczubachowski
Community Member
That’s pretty cool, I also noticed worms in your picture. I have the same exact types, are they good worms or bad worms? They only come out at nighthe is pretty, and he is definitely aiptasia
here is one of my grand specimens as an example of how they can end up looking
josvanmeer
Well-Known Member
That looks like a little fan worm, good to have, many people want them and actually pay for them before they put them in the tank.
king aiptasia
Well-Known Member
they are Eurythoe an exceptionally common and beneficial scavenger, they come out in the day if you feed them a lot
MayoTheCondiment
New Member
Hi King! I always get a kick out of seeing your username here
I feel like we might be kindred spirits - trying to appreciate a variety of different reef life, even the maybe-kinda-sometimes-bad ones!Do you think the attached picture / video is an Eurythoe? Or Bristleworm? Or Fireworm? I have 2 of these that are VERY active during daytime hours - always poking their head up and crawling all over everything.
I have Florida live rock shipped in water, so I got lots of critters - quite fun. Got some Dictyota macro algae that seems to have a bad rap in the reef community, but so far I kind of like it - its like an electric blue. Maybe I'll regret it when it takes over the tank tho
king aiptasia
Well-Known Member
We probably have quite a bit in common lol. This is definitely not Eurythoe, the caruncle (little bump on the head) is too big for that. Try getting a little clearer a shot on the head, it may be someone who should be rehomed. The more colorful amphinomid worms tend to hang out in the day time and use the flashy colors (spots on your particular worm) to warn predators that they won't be fun to eat. Nocturnal ones are often pink, grey brown or red because nobody is going to see their fancy colors if they had them anyway, so it is pointless to show offHi King! I always get a kick out of seeing your username here
Do you think the attached picture / video is an Eurythoe? Or Bristleworm? Or Fireworm? I have 2 of these that are VERY active during daytime hours - always poking their head up and crawling all over everything.
I have Florida live rock shipped in water, so I got lots of critters - quite fun. Got some Dictyota macro algae that seems to have a bad rap in the reef community, but so far I kind of like it - its like an electric blue. Maybe I'll regret it when it takes over the tank tho
