Yet another Aiptasia thread. CBB wont eat em

[m0jjen]

Hi so, here we got one of them aiptasia threads. I know there's a lot on the subject already, which i read plenty of.

Im kinda at my wits end atm.

Sample pictures.

Not the best pictures but it paints a picture of what we're dealing with. I've tried:
* Peppermints,
* Copperbanded butterfly (which sneaks into the picture). The CBB wont touch them but eats well and has thrived in the tank for some time now so i wont replace it since they are really hard to get established and most 9/10 seem to die in captivity here in Sweden.
* Filefish - They all eat aiptasia, and my 300$ LPS once they are done with aiptasia.
* Aiptasia-X (probably just made it worse)

I cannot get my hands on bergian nudies in Sweden, neither can i get F-aiptasia. So basiclly i could keep rotating filefishes and trade em back and wait for the aiptasia to come back, get more peppermints for 25$ each which just tick of corals in the long run and don't tough aiptasia.

I've watched BRS video on it aswell and ye well, they had nudies and a lot of other things to make a holistic approach with alot of livestock and manual killing.

Main reason to the thread is probably if anyone has ideas to how i could get the CBB to eat aiptasia, i have big and small and he wont go for any of them. I've tried shoving masstick onto them, my homemade frozen mushfood and so on but it will pick of the food and move along with its day.

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

Get couple of Klein butterflies.
Or bleach the tank if you wanna start over.

 

[m0jjen]

Get couple of Klein butterflies.
Or bleach the tank if you wanna start over.

Well its a 700+ liter system with fish and coral so just restarting it really isn't an option since livestock needs to be kept somewhere.

Regarding the butterflies they seem to be candidates to munch on my LPS even more so than the filefish :/

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

Butterflies will clean up Aiptasia in few days and then they will turn on corals. You will need to get them out after they eat up all Aiptasia.
That itself will be a challenge.

 

[Gablami]

Not all fish fit what their supposed to do I guess. I worked long and hard to get my CBB eating and into my tank, and now it eats everything, even nori! It devours aiptasia, so I’m trying to imagine yours which doesn’t touch it. When not feeding my CBB spends its day hunting amongst the rock. Does yours do that? It just doesn’t eat the aiptasi?

maybe you could consider cutting down the regular feeding and see what the CBB does when more hungry? Once it starts, I don’t think it will stop.

my CBB has left my LPS and clam alone, so not all butterflies go after other corals.

I think that’s your best bet besides berghia. If you’ve tried everything with than maybe it’s time to fly to the US and pick up some berghia personally (and maybe start a business?!). Seems like the EU needs a berghia supplier.

The other chemical solutions are a waste of time IME. Joe’s juice, aiptasia Mx, f-aiptasia don’t care of the problem for good. Just a never ending headache.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

In my tenure I've had at least 8-10 copperbands. The experience I have with them is, unless they know aiptasia is on the menu, they don't know they taste good. You have to coach them to try it. Feed the tank less and force the fish to graze a bit more on the rock. They can be picky but once they realize that's food, they will make short work of the aiptasia.

 

[m0jjen]

Not all fish fit what their supposed to do I guess. I worked long and hard to get my CBB eating and into my tank, and now it eats everything, even nori! It devours aiptasia, so I’m trying to imagine yours which doesn’t touch it. When not feeding my CBB spends its day hunting amongst the rock. Does yours do that? It just doesn’t eat the aiptasi?

Yeah it scavenge around the tank picking and pruning at what it can get, just not interested in aiptasia.

maybe you could consider cutting down the regular feeding and see what the CBB does when more hungry? Once it starts, I don’t think it will stop.

my CBB has left my LPS and clam alone, so not all butterflies go after other corals.

Only feeding once a day and vary the food from homemade frozen, Aquaforest marine grazer (the CBB eats that aswell) and masstick. The CBB dont bother corals or clams, no idea what it gets at in the rock tbh

I think that’s your best bet besides berghia. If you’ve tried everything with than maybe it’s time to fly to the US and pick up some berghia personally (and maybe start a business?!). Seems like the EU needs a berghia supplier.

The other chemical solutions are a waste of time IME. Joe’s juice, aiptasia Mx, f-aiptasia don’t care of the problem for good. Just a never ending headache.

You can get bergia around there, problem is that they ship poorly and are around 45$ each. So receiving 225$ worth of dead mollusks isn't that lucrative. I tried to get them from the biggest shop in the country but they advice against it since they tried and most/all died more than once when they ordered them.

Feel the same about chemicals, it just removes the eye soar while there's a lot of them still around.

 

[m0jjen]

In my tenure I've had at least 8-10 copperbands. The experience I have with them is, unless they know aiptasia is on the menu, they don't know they taste good. You have to coach them to try it. Feed the tank less and force the fish to graze a bit more on the rock. They can be picky but once they realize that's food, they will make short work of the aiptasia.

Thats pretty much my experience as well. Had one previously that died after clearing the tank. It came running when i flipped rock with aiptasia under it so they really do like it, once they realize it.

 

[Jimmyneptune]

I have been having some success with Nudibranch but didn’t think it was going to work either it seems to be working now, fingers crossed.
If I were you, and had some success with the filefish I’d go with the filefish to clear your display. Let the filefish take down the bulk of the aiptasia and then send him to the sump. I’ve got one in mine right now that doesn’t eat aiptasia, but loves eating corals.
Once the bulk is down, go to manual removal: lime juice, boiling water, or other methods.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Thats pretty much my experience as well. Had one previously that died after clearing the tank. It came running when i flipped rock with aiptasia under it so they really do like it, once they realize it.

That's a good story! While all the other fish are hiding in rocks, my cbb is the only one out following my handheld scraper when I'm turning over the sand. That's his time to hunt spaghetti worms... hehe... sorry to derail. They're great fish with great personalities...

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

I have been having some success with Nudibranch but didn’t think it was going to work either it seems to be working now, fingers crossed.
If I were you, and had some success with the filefish I’d go with the filefish to clear your display. Let the filefish take down the bulk of the aiptasia and then send him to the sump. I’ve got one in mine right now that doesn’t eat aiptasia, but loves eating corals.
Once the bulk is down, go to manual removal: lime juice, boiling water, or other methods.

My experience with that is once you remove the fish that is tampering down the pest, the pest comes back full force.

Of course the best action is not to get them, but that is very...very...very hard to do.

I rarely see aiptasia in my tank, but they're still in there. The only way I know the cbb is doing his job, is when I spot one, it's gone the next day.

 

[m0jjen]

That's a good story! While all the other fish are hiding in rocks, my cbb is the only one out following my handheld scraper when I'm turning over the sand. That's his time to hunt spaghetti worms... hehe... sorry to derail. They're great fish with great personalities...

Yeah love mine! If he just would snack om some dang aiptasia he'd get a picture on the wall!

 

[Gablami]

How long have you had the cbb? Maybe just give it some time if it’s only been a couple months. Or as last resort, you’ve been successful once keeping one alive, can try again with a different cbb. I bet someone would buy yours, as established cbb are hard to find.

 

[m0jjen]

How long have you had the cbb? Maybe just give it some time if it’s only been a couple months. Or as last resort, you’ve been successful once keeping one alive, can try again with a different cbb. I bet someone would buy yours, as established cbb are hard to find.

Give or take 5 months, so he might get around to them with time

 

[Ike]

I've never had an issue with a copperband being ineffective in the long term. My current copperband rid a system far worse infested than yours. However, I've never seen the copperband eat aiptasia and it took a while to notice the difference, but that was the only variable that it could be attributed to.

 

[danieyella]

I'm with you. Nudi's worked the first time, now my fish eat them. Tried filefish 2x - they nipped my acans. Tried a kleini, ended up with a voracious zoa appetite. Aiptasia-X and F-Aiptasia seem to just tick them off. I have 3 peppermints, they don't seem to care. I'm about to try a majano wand and just go in there every day zapping them meticulously until I'm confident they're gone.

 

[Victor_C3]

Just a random thought, but how is flow in your system? Both peppermint shrimp and copper band butterflies aren’t very tolerant of high flow. Just a thought...

Also, I came across an interest graphic illustrating the different shrimp that are often called peppermint shrimp. The first one or ‘A’ is the one you want.

I’m not sure who made the graphic, I’m just reposting what someone else threw out there.

 

[m0jjen]

I've never had an issue with a copperband being ineffective in the long term. My current copperband rid a system far worse infested than yours. However, I've never seen the copperband eat aiptasia and it took a while to notice the difference, but that was the only variable that it could be attributed to.

I have had both, either they dont touch it or they love it, maybe it will get around to it as you mention

Just a random thought, but how is flow in your system? Both peppermint shrimp and copper band butterflies aren’t very tolerant of high flow. Just a thought...

My system is quite highlow and BB so that may factor in, but he/she seems to fair well with it since my rockwork shelter alot of areas, can try to slow it down abit i guess.

 

[Viking_Reefing]

Training the copperband would be my advice.
I would personally restrict food for a couple of days and then spotfeed the aptasia, with any luck the cbb will move in and whilst grabbing the food also eat a piece of aptasia and develop a taste for them that way.

In my experience peppermints work but you need a lot of them and it will take some time before you see any effect.

Lycka till, glasrosor kan dra åt helvete

 

[Cudaman]

Inappropriate Reefer blasted them with a pretty nasty laser ... not sure how this worked in the long run but looks interesting !