Zoa eating nudibranch

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

I have some zoa eating nudibranch and I’d like to know the best way to get rid of them and I’m not sure if it being there too long will ruin my coral

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
I have some zoa eating nudibranch and I’d like to know the best way to get rid of them and I’m not sure if it being there too long will ruin my coral

How do you know you have them?

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
How do you know you have them?

I can see them on my zoanthid

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

can you show a picture?

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

Zoa eating nudibranch are very small and slow moving. Other pods (good ones) like using zoas as a refuge from predation - therefore you can only know you have nudis if you dip zoas in RO water and inspect whatever drops out of them..

vetteguy53081 · Sep 17, 2021

You will have to manually remove them with either siphoning thru a tube or netting them out as you find them. Additionally for the next two weeks, inspect daily for presence of ANY eggs they may have deposited. Eggs are VERY TINY

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
can you show a picture?

You can’t really see them but basically it’s causing my zoas to close up

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
can you show a picture?

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
You can’t really see them but basically it’s causing my zoas to close up

Zoas close up for all kinds of reasons - unless you found nudis via RO dip, you can't just assume they are the reason for zoa behavour

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
Zoas close up for all kinds of reasons - unless you found nudis via RO dip, you can't just assume they are the reason for zoa behavour

do wrasses eat nudibranch , just out of curiosity ?

mwil79 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
Zoas close up for all kinds of reasons - unless you found nudis via RO dip, you can't just assume they are the reason for zoa behavour

They aren't that small and they tend to be the same color of the zoa they are eating so they pop quite easily. I had a wild colony of zoas a while ago and had a few that were easily seen without dipping. Much larger than a amphipod.

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
do wrasses eat nudibranch , just out of curiosity ?

Yes, wrasse would.

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

mwil79 said:
They aren't that small and they tend to be the same color of the zoa they are eating so they pop quite easily. I had a wild colony of zoas a while ago and had a few that were easily seen without dipping. Much larger than a amphipod.

So what could it be? Because I have other zoas that are currently opening up fine

Borat · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
So what could it be? Because I have other zoas that are currently opening up fine

I have a zoa colony thats half open half melted (been like that for a couple of months). i have 3 other zoa colonies with 100s polyps that are nearby and happy. The reasons for why they decide to melt away are little understood.

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

Borat said:
I have a zoa colony thats half open half melted (been like that for a couple of months). i have 3 other zoa colonies with 100s polyps that are nearby and happy. The reasons for why they decide to melt away are little understood.

Yes but there is something on my coral. I might just dip it again

Alaeriel · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
Yes but there is something on my coral. I might just dip it again

Highly recommend the dip. If you can, try to gently scrub and siphon the area of the rock around where the frag was too.

fishandstangs · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
do wrasses eat nudibranch , just out of curiosity ?

Yes I have a melanurus and 6 line that took care of the problem for me. I would also dip however you’d be surprised of what’s on some of your corals!

FRANK48 · Sep 17, 2021

fishandstangs said:
Yes I have a melanurus and 6 line that took care of the problem for me. I would also dip however you’d be surprised of what’s on some of your corals!

Thank you

fishandstangs · Sep 17, 2021

FRANK48 said:
Thank you

No problem, I like most of us learned the hard way. But that’s the beauty of the hoby. There’s always more to learn.

Brit’s Fish · Sep 29, 2021

FRANK48 said:
Yes but there is something on my coral. I might just dip it again

Definitely dip them again. As someone else said, zoa eating nudis are not that small. You can definitely see them in the colony if you’re looking carefully. The other thing to look for and gently scrub away with a soft toothbrush would be eggs on the stalks of the zoas. The eggs end up looking like little swirls.
Nudis tend to come out more at night as well, in my experience with having them, so check later in the day before or after your lights go out.