Vermetid Snail

hawkinsrgk · Sep 15, 2015

I would like eradicate the vermetid snails that I have in my tank. There are probably hundreds of these in my tank and I am not able to get to all of them. Last week I probably killed 50 of them. I have done a lot of reading on this and I wanted to get your opinion. Using Pliers and/or super glue/epoxy does not really solve the problem because it is impossible to get to all of them. Just trying to find the best option of what would work.

super glue/epoxy - Can't get to all of them and it is very time consuming.
feed less - not really an option
yellow coris wrasse -
arrow crab -
blue spot puffer -

Seems like the yellow wrasse would be a good option if I could keep him from jumping out of the tank. I have a canopy and eggcrate on the overflows and back of the canopy so the odds of him jumping out would fairly low, but it would still be possible (maybe).

Arrow crab - never thought about this being an option, but it seems like it would work.

Blue spot puffer - Not sure how much of a problem this would be with my tank mainly being an SPS tank and if he would eat these and the other snails that I dont want killed.

Thanks for the help
Randy

KJ · Sep 15, 2015

Copperbanded Butterflyfish?

Larry L · Sep 15, 2015

KJ said:
Copperbanded Butterflyfish?

I was just talking to a friend who mentioned that after he added a Copperband (not specifically for the vermetids), he has not seen any since.

KJ · Sep 15, 2015

It's worth a try.

hawkinsrgk · Sep 15, 2015

Thanks guys for the help. I stopped by the local LFS just after a shipment came in. I got two arrow crabs. Hopefully this will work. I have bought three copperbands through the years and non of them made it

hawkinsrgk · Sep 15, 2015

Came to the conclusion that keeping one alive was above my pay grade. If the arrow crabs fail I may try one again. It may be that I neted them when I put them in my tank and that is why I couldn't keep them alive

CastAway · Sep 17, 2015

I have an increasing number. Wish I had a laser!

stiky · Sep 17, 2015

I have that laser. 1.5w does the trick. But as he said. Finding them all is a problem. Some are hidden and you don't get to them all. Just like some aiptasia are hidden and the refraction at an angle through the water sometimes doesn't fully cook them all that are deep in the tank. But 99% boil to death. Look at laserpointerforums.com. You have to build it but it's not that hard if you have some basic electronics knowledge and tools. I think a livestock option would be more effective having gone the laser route. It's fun. But they just never end!

MFR · Sep 17, 2015

These are the worst and after years of using KZ Sponge Power I have way too many. My copperband goes nowhere near these. I too am looking for a solution aside from manual extraction. Where did you read about the yellow coris solution?

Thanks,

MFR

hawkinsrgk · Sep 17, 2015

MFR said:
These are the worst and after years of using KZ Sponge Power I have way too many. My copperband goes nowhere near these. I too am looking for a solution aside from manual extraction. Where did you read about the yellow coris solution?

Thanks,

MFR

I did a Google search and one of the forums that came up mentioned that

hawkinsrgk · Sep 17, 2015

Shout out to whoever posted this on Facebook. Thank you

bct15 · Sep 17, 2015

To get rid of them takes some work, and you'll never be able to eliminate every single one. If you have any halechoeres wrasse, you can work with your wrasse to eliminate them. You have to use a bone cutter (or similar tool) to cut the shells open. Just go around your tank and cut them open, once your wrasse can get to them it will eat them. I usually just cut the spout off, then stick the point of one of the blades from the bone cutter in the hole and make a snip. I repeat in the crossing direction, which will usually leave a huge gaping hole in the shell of the snail. My radiant and hoevens wrasse make quick work of them after that, or they typically will die if the wrasse doesn't get them.

Chrisss · Sep 17, 2015

Had a huge outbreak in my Tank, like tons everywhere. Eventually they just went away slowly, maybe my wrasses got them or just they died off? Who knows, probably just a cycle like everything else

Any reason you want them out?

reefbeard · Sep 17, 2015

I would not consider Arrow crabs reef safe or fish safe for that matter. Coral polyps and small fish are always at risk with these guys especially as they get larger. Manual extraction along with a Halichoeres chrysus is what helped reduce their population. Still have a few in the hard to reach areas of rocks but the population remains in check.

hawkinsrgk · Sep 18, 2015

bct15 said:
To get rid of them takes some work, and you'll never be able to eliminate every single one. If you have any halechoeres wrasse, you can work with your wrasse to eliminate them. You have to use a bone cutter (or similar tool) to cut the shells open. Just go around your tank and cut them open, once your wrasse can get to them it will eat them. I usually just cut the spout off, then stick the point of one of the blades from the bone cutter in the hole and make a snip. I repeat in the crossing direction, which will usually leave a huge gaping hole in the shell of the snail. My radiant and hoevens wrasse make quick work of them after that, or they typically will die if the wrasse doesn't get them.

That was kindof my first approach. I would take pliers and smash the base, then the blue leg hermit crabs would go straight to them. I have just gone as far as I can go with that approach. The ones on the bottom I can't get to.

hawkinsrgk · Sep 18, 2015

Chrisss said:
Had a huge outbreak in my Tank, like tons everywhere. Eventually they just went away slowly, maybe my wrasses got them or just they died off? Who knows, probably just a cycle like everything else

Any reason you want them out?

What they do is setup next to the base of the coral or in the base of the coral. Then they project the spider web mucus everywhere. I have noticed that any coral that has this mucus on them has absolutely no polyp extension and that part of the coral is very faded as well. For example I have a pink millepora that has a vermetid at one side of the base. It has been this way for quite some time. The growth on the side of the coral that doesn't have the snail is approximately 40% more than the other side.

I have seen these things impede the growth of acropora and acropora millepora. To be fair about this I have a very large purple stylophora and neon tip birdsnest that do not seem to be affected. So I don't know if its the size of these corals or the type that makes them appear to be immune. The stylopora is about the size of a football and the birdsnest is basketball size.

Thank you for the feedback
Randy

hawkinsrgk · Sep 18, 2015

reefbeard said:
I would not consider Arrow crabs reef safe or fish safe for that matter. Coral polyps and small fish are always at risk with these guys especially as they get larger. Manual extraction along with a Halichoeres chrysus is what helped reduce their population. Still have a few in the hard to reach areas of rocks but the population remains in check.

That you for letting me know this and will be sure to keep a close watch. I can already see the big one is not very friendly. He is maybe 4 inches around. The baby yellow tang (2 or 3 inches) thinks that he is a cleaner shrimp and will back into him for what I call a car wash. The arrow crab will poke him with one of his arms and this causes the yellow tang to swim away for maybe 30 seconds and then the whole process starts over. I have a 3 year old Desjardini sailfin tang and scopas tang that are large, two clowns, a yellow tang and a hippo tang.