Would a Harlequin Tusk Eat Zuzara Venosa's?

[Anonymous]

Well, would he eat them?

I think I'd like a fish that would eradicate my reef of these bugs that are causing my skimmer to clog.

I have put an Ocean Clear canister filter in like with my skimmer's pump, which seems to fixing the problem. I don't like that as a permenate solution.

Would the Tusk also eat my snails? I have about 40 snails. Combination of Mexican Turbo's, Cerinth, and Astrea's.

If a Tusk is not up to this task, what fish would be?

The fish wouldn't necessarily be a part of my long term stocking plan.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

It might be easier to starve the pill bugs out, Louey.

 

[Anonymous]

How does one stave out the pill bugs, Andy?

It ain't like I am feeding them. The tank is empty aside from the LR and snails. I don't feed the tank.

They seem to be multiplying.

There are hundreds of them.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Quite possibly though it will eat your other snails, shrimp, small fish, stars, urchins, etc.
If it was me I try a species of Pseudocheilinus (wrasse) they stay smaller and
are considerably more long term reef safe.

Regards,
David Mohr

 

[Anonymous]

If it is the large pill bugs they have to be eating something - they are scavangers. How long has this "bloom" been going on?

 

[Anonymous]

Andy wrote:

If it is the large pill bugs they have to be eating something - they are scavangers. How long has this "bloom" been going on?

New tank. New rock. I think the pills came on the Marshall Island LR, but I can't be sure.

They are detrivores and there will always be a food source for them.

If you know of a way to starve a detrivore in a reef tank, please tell. Or better yet, write a book about it and become a millionaire. Sounds impossile to me.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

davidmorh wrote:

Quite possibly though it will eat your other snails, shrimp, small fish, stars, urchins, etc.
If it was me I try a species of Pseudocheilinus (wrasse) they stay smaller and
are considerably more long term reef safe.

I don't really care if the fish I put in there to eat the pills is a long term reef fish or not.

I would rather whatever fish I put in there doesn't eat the snails, but that wouldn't be the end of the world if it did eradicate the marine pills. I hate those little bastards.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Andy wrote:

If it is the large pill bugs they have to be eating something - they are scavangers. How long has this "bloom" been going on?

New tank. New rock. I think the pills came on the Marshall Island LR, but I can't be sure.

They are detrivores and there will always be a food source for them.

If you know of a way to starve a detrivore in a reef tank, please tell. Or better yet, write a book about it and become a millionaire. Sounds impossile to me.

Louey

If you are not feeding the tank they will starve themselves out once the rock is cured. Do some water changes and vacum.

 

[Anonymous]

Well, the rock is fairly well cured. Nitrates are 5 PPM or less, Phosphates are between .25 and .5 meq/l.

I have done two 105 gallon water changes in the last 2 weeks. Vacuuming was included in those WC.

These little bastards are still clogging my skimmer even after I put the Ocean Clear canister filter in line with the skimmer pump.

I am getting real tempted to go ahead and order a needlewheel skimmer.

As for starving them, I really don't agree with you. I think it would take a year to stave them.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

The pleasures of a big tank, ay. Blast and vacum and they will starve. IMO.


How long has this bloom been going on?

 

[Anonymous]

Since I added the liverock. I added the first rock on August 22th. The last rock was added on August 27th.

I didn't notice the skimmer clogging the first week or so. I assume it took that long for the population to start to multiply.

There are thousands of amphipods in the tank now, and hundreds of these pills.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Everything will find it's natural balance sooner or later, as I'm sure you know, Louey. Is there anyway you can "learn to live with 'em". If the flow is not to harsh the tank sounds like a paradise for some Dragonettes. Good luck.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm sure the high flow in the tank is what is making these bugs a problem for me. I wasn't going to start throttling the flow back until I start stocking and find that the flow is too high, which it probably is.

I need the high flow for the SPS. I also want high flow to keep things stirred up so that the skimmer would be more effective.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Starving them out will take a real good long time, IMO. I mean, they eat anything. I haven't added a trace of food or anything organic to my tank for 3 months and I still have them, along with all the other pods.

Louey I think if you want to get a fish to eat them, it would have to be to control rather than to completely eradicate them. There are so many areas where they could hide, they could never get all of them. I think whatever fish you get should be a permanent addition.

I vote for a Radiant or Mystery wrasse or a Candy Hogfish. All will mop up those beasties, and they look really cool.

 

[Anonymous]

On a completely unrelated note, here is a picture of H. iridis. IMO the coolest looking, and they are incredibly peaceful towards other fish. Pseudos and hogs can get kind of mean and nasty.

 

[Anonymous]

Hmm. According to my websearch, the Radiant and Mystery Wrasses both require (or prefer) a sandy bottom. My tank is BB.

There is no mention of a sandy bottom for a Candy Hogfish.

Do you think it would do okay without a sandy bottom?

 

[Anonymous]

Oh yeah, forgot you had BB.

Ya know I'm not really sure about that. I have a Bodianus pulchellus and I don't see it bury itself. Not sure about B. bimaculatus.

 

[Anonymous]

I went to my local LFS's and they didn't have any of the above fish. They did have one beautiful Tusk. What a tempting fish.

I have just about resigned myself that I am going to need the needlewheel skimmer. The ASM with the recirc mod leaks, or so says the folks from asmskimmers.com. To bad the leadtime for a Euroreef CS12-3 recirc model is 6 - 8 weeks. To bad the price tag is $1189 too.

I was hoping to start stocking this tank in the next week or so, but no-can-do without reliable skimming. Kiss my butt. :?

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

When the light came on today, I saw at least 50 or 60 of these little buggers out on the bottom. I grabbed a siphon hose and bucket and sucked them little buggers out of there. Once it got down to only a few left, I ditched the siphon hose and sucked them out with a turkey baster. I didn't stop until I got every single one of them that was in sight.

I'll keep a turkey baster and a 5G bucket handy and just start doing this once a day.

Maybe this will be more effective than adding a fish to eat them. Maybe it will take both.

We'll see.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

I give up on eradicating the pills.

Even with all the ones I have siphoned off in the last two days, they are still clogging my skimmer left and right.

I guess a beckett skimmer is just not for a high flow tank.

I sent an email to premium aquatics today in regards to the lead time on a Euroreef CS12-3-RC.

I must have excellent skimming for this tank to become what I had envisioned.

Louey