Help Me Before It's Too Late Please

[aznt1217]

Hello Everybody,

I have an Aiptasia problem. I have 4 Peppermint Shrimp in there and they can't do the job. I know people said don't feed the tank but the problem is all my fish will starve.

Does anybody have a Nudibranch I can borrow? I've been researching all over the place and the only viable solutions are the biological way. I see the Aiptasia, it's the Big ones that I am worried about. The little ones not so much yet. They are getting big really fast...

 

[NIGHTCRAWLER]

aqua hut in coram, has plenty of nudibranches, i bought 2 there. give them a call.

 

[Pinkheine]

aqua hut in coram, has plenty of nudibranches, i bought 2 there. give them a call.

Giving them a call will do no good. They don't use the phone only the fax machine.

 

[Pedro Nuno Ferreira]

Hello Everybody,

I have an Aiptasia problem. I have 4 Peppermint Shrimp in there and they can't do the job. I know people said don't feed the tank but the problem is all my fish will starve.

Does anybody have a Nudibranch I can borrow? I've been researching all over the place and the only viable solutions are the biological way. I see the Aiptasia, it's the Big ones that I am worried about. The little ones not so much yet. They are getting big really fast...

Hi aznt1217...calm down!!!...arthVadeiptasia are bad yes but they can be controlled and eliminated. Your Peppermint Shrimps can't do de job simply because it is to much for them, please read some more here peppermint shmp (

1 2 3) and since you feed a lot because of your fish, the Peppermint Shrimps simply take advantage from that and prefer so rather than having to "battle with a nasty stinging :squid:piece of food" that can harm them, for food, which is the reason why Peppermint Shrimp wont attack larger Aiptasia and the same will happen with the nudibranches Berghia verrucosa which will also be food for the Peppermint Shrimp berghia nudi and pep shmp (

1 2).

Hi meagheavz ;-)
In fact it doesn't. It was for you to get more "acquainted" with the berghia nudi.
Now concerning your question, it is simple, do not mix them!!!!!, please read this in detail where among other very important information to follow you will also find the text bellow that answers your question directly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inland South Texas Aquaculture Reef[FONT=Verdana[/B]

][/font]Do not try to keep them with Peppermint or Camel Shrimp. These Lysmata species eat nearly everything that lives and we are very sure Berghia will be no exception. Some people have no trouble with them, but that depends on the tank and it's inhabitants. Peppermints may be safe with leather corals and adult Peppermint shrimp will eat aiptasia as well as anything similar in structure. They will eventually kill Tubastrea and small BTA's that can not tolerate a tentacle being plucked each night as well as other things. There is an occasional one kept alone that can be fed and kept under control, but, it is not a safe thing to try as they can go after something without warning. Peppermints are nocturnal and very shy and this means witnessing the damage they do is not going to happen. Very often zooanthids and polyps will really extend once the Peppermint shrimp are removed if they are in a tank. Peppermint shrimp are easily caught along rocky jetties of the lower Texas and Florida coast, not from reef areas. They are not "reef safe" as some people seem to think. The sting of the Berghia would not even phase these predator shrimp. Cleaner Shrimp are okay as they do not bother the Berghia nudibranches at all. Old literature says there are no documented predators of the Berghia nudibranches but we have found this is not correct.

Please read also this in detail.

I believe this will answer your question and a lot more that you didn't ask but need to know. You now have been given several possibilities aipstia outbreak (

1 2 3 ... Last Page), take your pick, combine them if you want but do not mix the shrimps with the berghia.

Berghia verrucosa nudibranchs are very small by nature and will not attack larger Aiptasia.

Please read also this article Aquarium Culture of the Aeolid Nudibranch Berghia Predator on the Nuisance Anemone Aiptasia

Since you have to feed your fish, which possibly are also to many for your tank:irked::tongue1:, and in consequence the Peppermint Shrimp, which benefit of that wealth of food so simple to get and because of that and the fact also that some of the arthVadeiptasia grew to large that they wont attack them for food:squid:, this leaves us with to possible solutions:

a) you should burn the arthVadeiptasia with hot iron or a flame from a lighter, for which you will have to remove one by one the live rock as explained some time ago to meagheavz, please read here aipstia outbreak (

1 2 3 ... Last Page)

Hi meagheavz ;-)
Keep calm and believe that you are going to solve the problem ...we know you can and will solve the problem and we believe in you (I just wish I was living closer and those arthVadeiptasia would be history by now...)
There is another way that I did not mention previously but it works, especially when you deal with rocks that have some corals attached. Its very simple and effective as I could experience and is used when you have to very precisely aim the action and avoid damaging anything else or disturb the water parameters, and KathyC already gave you part of the treatment, which is, selecting one rock at the time, take it out and put it in a bucket filled with your tank water but instead of using Kalkwasser solution, in this case you will use an old knife and fire....

1st - Select one rock with corals attached, and only one!
2nd - Select a container which you know will provide enough room for both you to operate, meaning grab the rock, pull it out and place it back without damaging any corals.
3rd - Choose and cheap old steel butter knife or meat knife, depending on the precision you have to use (maybe both and the reason for it to be old is because you could damage it in the process)
4th - Light a fire or simply use a a cigarette lighter (and don?t burn your fingers in the process:irked::Blurp
5th - Light the the cigarette lighter and place the blade of the knife on top od the blue flame, as this is hotter than the yellow part of the flame (30 seconds to a minute should be enough)
6th - Once the heating time has elapsed, turn off the lighter (watch where you put it down as it will be very hot) and pick up the rock and position the hot, or red hot blade on top of the Aiptasia for some 5 seconds, after which you put back the rock in the bucket. Repeat the operation for every Aiptasia and try not to exceed 30 minutes in this operation.
7th - Pick up the rock form the bucket and clean with tank salt water the places where you melted down the Aiptasia.
8th - After cleaning as per 7th, put the rock back in the tank.

proceed like this progressively, rock by rock, until you are satisfied with the result. You will be preserving the biological life and capacity of the rock, and you will also eradicate the arthVadeiptasia

I've done this procedure some times when needed and it is effectively terminal.
Please keep us updated

Cheers
Pedro Nuno ;-)

b) You "nuke" them with Kalkwasser

Hi megheavz ;-)
Give the fish time to know the premisses and feel comfortable in your tank and don't think to much about it as fish (and most animals) can sense anxiety, which could lead them to adopt a secluded attitude.

Should the fish decide not to eat the Aiptasia or due to the quantity, as I could see in the photographs, not be effective, here is a photographic sequence on how to get rid of those anemones with KalkWasser (Calcium Hidorxide and water concentrated solution - 1 American tea spoon for 50cc) and a syringe without a needle:

Obviously due the quantity you have (I presume you still have to much) you will have to do the elimination progressively and consistently. So you select an area and only when it is clean then you move to the adjacent area and so on until you get rid of all the Aiptasia. Should you go or have to go in some cases for mechanical removal, be sure not to lacerate and leave behind any portion of the anemone as it will reproduce by cell division and spread again.
Since you now have a Bristle Fish, make sure that it does not come to the area that you treated immediately after you done so, 5 minutes should be enough to kill the larger anemones which will start by swell, then shrink and disappear.
Well hope this helps and may the force be with your Bristle Fish to fight those arthVadeiptasia

Cheers
Pedro Nuno ;-)

So far as it got from what you wrote, these are the possibilities... which imply direct action from you and not a biological action.

Its important to have always in mind that although we much like our "bit of sea and coral reef at home", we do not live for it but with it, which means that we can't always sit back relaxing and enjoy it:beer: and we must not be salves of it, there has to be a balance, otherwise it will not be interesting. This said, you probably should consider having less fish, if in fact you do have to many, or/and improve water flow, perform more partial water changes, plan better and act on the arthVadeiptasia long before they reach the status of "problematic organisms", a problem that not even natural predators can deal with...leaving the last possibility which is...you become the direct pest controller, but again you are the primary pest controller, by acting and planning in due time. arthVadeiptasia are a reality of nature which do not boom like they do in closed marine systems, and this because they only find the conditions for that in home aquaria/closed systems, so some planning has to be done to avoid or limit that.
Please do also check your nitrate and phosphate levels. Suggestion: use either Elos or Salifert test kits, as they are very accurate

May the force be with you...:tongue1::kidding:...proceed methodically and you will succeed

Cheers
Pedro Nuno;-)

 

[spacenyc]

lye is the solution

had same problem. used lye roeboics from lowes, only store that sells it. worked great and completely safe for the tank, dangerous to people so be very careful. then made small qt tank with pep shrimp and rotated rock piece by piece. went from tremendous problem to gone in a month on a 100 lbs of rock. Steve

 

[pnoyreefer]

Try Aiptasia X. .. I have no personal experience with it but heard some people have used it and it worked on them ...

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Your fish will not starve if you don't feed for a few days. My fish have gone up to 5 days without food and have been fine. But then again I feed them alot on a regular basis so they had time to store some fat up.

 

[daaznmofo]

try joe's juice.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Joes juice has worked great for me the 2 times I had an aiptasia.

 

[Josh]

All of the suggestions above are great (especially Pedro's with all the links and cool photos of an aiptasia getting bombed!), but I always prefer a natural solution when available.

Try to cut down on the feeding and consider adding another pair of peppermint shrimp, they have worked for me every single time I have had a problem.

 

[NIGHTCRAWLER]

aqua hut does answer the phone.whenever i called always got someone too pick up.

 

[aznt1217]

THANKS FOR ALL THE INPUT GUYS .

I bought Aiptasia X and am going to give it a shot. I'm going to hit the 4 big ones, then let the Peppermint take care of the rest.

 

[aznt1217]

Aiptasia X seems to be working... only time will tell now. I'll keep everyone posted!

 

[ellebelle]

Your peppermints will eventually work. I thought mine had all finally died because I saw one aiptasia in the rock but then it disappeared. So I guess they're still eating them!

 

[pmoneyt]

how many peppermint shimp should i put in a 120

 

[Salty Dog]

http://www.berghia.net/marketprice.html

 

[marki24]

My natural home remedy for aptasia: get a syringe at your local pharmacy, sometimes they might turn you down cause they say you need a script or get it from someone who is a diabetic (thats what I did) fill it with naturally squeezed lime juice and shoot the bigger aptasia ones with it. It might be a pain in the behind doing it but it worked for me. I am not quiet sure how much of it do you have but its my natural way of killing it, and giving the corals and fish some vitamin C :lol2: protecting them from the common cold