earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 It finally happened. Just at the edge of my green star polyps, I see it--a f%&$ing aiptasia. Well, like my LFS says, anyone who says they've had a reef tank for years and never had them is full of s*%t, so I guess it was destiny. Anyway, I'm getting a Lettuce Nudibranch to get rid of it (or them, if there are others I haven't seen--so far, just one and it's tiny) and wonder if there's any way to keep it alive after it's eaten the aiptasia. I've heard they eat hair algae, but I don't have any in my tank thanks to my wonderful clean up crew. I don't think I could just feed it Formula Two because my understanding is that it uses live chloroplasts to enable photosynthesis. I don't have a fuge, so I can't really grow plants--or could I? A lot of European reefers think that we Americans are obsessive about keeping algae out of our tanks and keep lots of macroalgae in theirs--they just trim it like bushes so that it doesn't get out of control. That's worst case scenario, though. Has anyone out there had any luck keeping them alive? Link to comment
bpowder Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Never had them but pepermint shrimp are suppost to eat Aiptasia also. I say suppost to because I have 2 pepermints and they havent touched mine Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 I've always heard that Peppermint Shrimp are a little unreliable on eating aiptasia; apparently, they only eat them if they are starving. My LFS said that the Lettuce Nudibranch will got for the aiptasia right away; I'd just like to keep it alive once the aiptasia is gone. Link to comment
Hwarang Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Use Joes Juice. It's cheaper and you can store it on the shelf when you're done with it Link to comment
bpowder Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 I blasted mine with a syranige <-- sp ? and boiling water. I thought i got them little bits floated away and what not but the next day them little suckers where back. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by earwicker7 My LFS said that the Lettuce Nudibranch will got for the aiptasia right away. Then I would ask your LFS if they are inhaling broken halide fumes... Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by birdman204 Then I would ask your LFS if they are inhaling broken halide fumes... Or you could ask him why he's the most successful reef store owner in the Hollywood area and services all of the major motion picture industry's tanks. You don't get to the point where you're doing business with the CEO of Universal Studios unless you know what you're talking about. Link to comment
Doc Shake Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 a "lettuce nudibranch" is not a nudibranch at all, rather a sacoglossan. They are herbiverous and will not eat apitasia. I'm sure the CEO of Universal did not hire your LFS guy based on what he knows about Cnidarian and Molluscan biology. Buy Joes Juice. Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by Doc Shake a "lettuce nudibranch" is not a nudibranch at all, rather a sacoglossan. They are herbiverous and will not eat apitasia. I'm sure the CEO of Universal did not hire your LFS guy based on what he knows about Cnidarian and Molluscan biology. Buy Joes Juice. I know that they are actually sea slugs, but the fact is that the commonly used name is the Lettuce Nudibranch so it would have been kind of pointless to use a reference that only 1% of the people on this site would have understood if the purpose is to get information from people who have owned them. As to them not eating aiptasia, almost every source that I've seen disagrees with you, and since my LFS has actually refused to sell me items that he believes I don't need (which is why he has all of the big-dollar accounts; people appreciate someone who does it for the love of the hobby and not for the money, as his main source of income is building custom motorcycles) I don't think he's trying to make a buck and I'm going to take him at his word. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by earwicker7 he's the most successful reef store owner in the Hollywood area and services all of the major motion picture industry's tanks. Have you seen some of the Bogus, "asthetically" set-up tanks. Nip Tuck uses a huge SW tank with all dead corals, and a bubble bar... doesn't look like a setup created for long term success. I went to the movies this weekend to see a Puffer, Lionfish and Eel all in a tank that was still cloudy from setup for the "Shark Tale" movie. No LR, and again, STILL cloudy from setup. The Movie industry is FAR from concerned for the animals health. If he told you a lettuce Nudi will eat aptasia, he/she was trippin'... Was it Aquarium City? If so, I'd find out who told you that info, and let the owner know. Also, FWIW, I STILL have had no positive experience with Joe's juice, except in spreading more smaller anemones. I do not recommend using it. Instead try for natural control means, mainly nutrient control , at least to keep them from spreading. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 3 searches for lettuce nudi's, and you may find 1% showing they don't eat algae. http://www.google.com/custom?q=lettuce+nud...wetwebmedia.com http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/search.p...rder=descending http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/search.php...rder=descending Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by birdman204 Have you seen some of the Bogus, "asthetically" set-up tanks. I went to the movies this weekend to see a Puffer, Lionfish and Eel all in a tank that was still cloudy from setup for the "Shark Tale" movie. The Movie industry is FAR from concerned for the animals health. If he told you a lettuce Nudi will eat aptasia, he/she was trippin'... Also, FWIW, I STILL have had no positive experience with Joe's juice, except in spreading more smaller anemones. I do not recommend using it. Instead try for natural control means, mainly nutrient control , at least to keep them from spreading. I agree with you that the movie industry isn't concerned with the animals' health, but that doesn't mean my LFS isn't. He mentioned a time that an exec HAD to get a shark in his office that weekend; ie he wanted to throw together a tank without having it cycle so that he could impress some friends. My LFS could have sold him a 180g tank with a $300 shark, but he refused because he said the shark would die unless the tank had time to cycle. Again, I trust this guy--he's never led me down the wrong path, and he and his customers say that they have had success with the lettuce nudi. Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by birdman204 3 searches for lettuce nudi's, and you may find 1% showing they don't eat algae. http://www.google.com/custom?q=lettuce+nud...wetwebmedia.com http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/search.p...rder=descending http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/search.php...rder=descending Please read my original post--I actually mentioned that they do eat hair algae; I just wanted to know of a way to keep them alive since there is no hair algae in my tank. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by earwicker7 I just wanted to know of a way to keep them alive since there is no hair algae in my tank. You can try to supplement with Nori or freeze dried seaweed, But I am not sure if they will accept these substitutes. I know they won't eat aptasias... There are other nudi's that will... Berghia verrucornis and Hermessinda Crassicornis Will both consume the "Pest" Aptasia. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by earwicker7 My LFS could have sold him a 180g tank with a $300 shark, but he refused because he said the shark would die unless the tank had time to cycle. Commendable, but sometimes they are protecting their own butt also. They don't wanna explain to the guy in a week that he was too stubborn to listen to them, and instead of making $300 , it will cost him $300 for negative feedback, and I am sure he/she knows this. Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by birdman204 Commendable, but sometimes they are protecting their own butt also. They don't wanna explain to the guy in a week that he was too stubborn to listen to them, and instead of making $300 , it will cost him $300 for negative feedback, and I am sure he/she knows this. Guess you're just going to have to take my word on him being a stand-up guy. I've noticed that there seems to be a lot of anti-LFS sentiment on the web; am I the only one out there that likes their LFS? I'm wondering if this might be due to the fact that many LFS didn't get saltwater livestock until Finding Nemo and have even less knowledge about reefs--god help you if all you guys have to go to is PETCO or some idiot with that one tank that has 5 corals in it. This guy has been selling reef products since the late 80s, when reefing was virtually unknown outside of Europe, so I'd say he's about as knowledgable as a store owner can be. By the way--those of you who say that the nudi won't work, is this from personal experience or just hearsay? Link to comment
Doc Shake Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Sources that say what is commonly called a "lettuce nudibranch" eat anemones are wrong. They look the way they due thanks to the temporary use of chloroplasts in the mantle on their backs. The chloroplasts come from the algae that the animals eats, not apitasia, (cnidarians do not use chloroplasts), look for Tridachi crispata, this may help. Just a tip, I for one am not impressed with your LFS guy nor the movie industry. Clearly other people feel the same way, so dont blow that horn too loud Link to comment
Cameron Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Haven't tried them before, but I've read that Berghia nudibranchs are good at clearing out aiptasia. You can get them at coralsandbar.com for $16. Link to comment
Doc Shake Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Cameron is right, Berghia sps. are true nudibranchs and will eat apitasia. They also will eat most other pacific anemones and are known at times to eat zooanthids. Link to comment
taketz Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 I too have never heard of lettuce Nudibranchs eating aiptasia. I had 2 in a 20 gallon (Bad Hair algae) and none of my aptasia was ever touched. As for you getting defensive about your LFS guy: He WILL make money off of you, unlike people on this board. Not saying he's not a nice guy, its just some food for thought. ~ Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 There are some LFS that are cool. But usually, they earn their poor reputations. I never said he wasn't a stand - up guy. I just said he was wrong. Doc is right, I have had more luck with berghia eating zoanthus instead of aptasia. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 FWIW, I don't think anyone said you can't keep the lettuce nudi's. They will need a constant supply of microalgae though... I have 2 in my fishless and mostly cleanup crewless prop tanks. They do a good job of cleaning up the random hair that pops up now and then. Be sure to keep them from going over an overflow or getting sucked into a PH intake. Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 I just called the LFS--he said that he was ordering a Berghia, not a lettuce. I told him that he said lettuce; he said it was busy when I phoned him, and he does have ADD (really--this isn't a joke), so he must have thrown out the wrong name. Oops. As far as him making money off me, well, he does have to feed his family--I'm all for Communism (really) but we live in a capitalist society. But on my 50g setup, he showed me his pricelist when we added everything up and he ended up giving my a $500 discount--granted, we are kind of friends, so I doubt if he gives it to everyone, but it was nice nonetheless. Link to comment
earwicker7 Posted October 4, 2004 Author Share Posted October 4, 2004 Originally posted by birdman204 There are some LFS that are cool. But usually, they earn their poor reputations. I never said he wasn't a stand - up guy. I just said he was wrong. Doc is right, I have had more luck with berghia eating zoanthus instead of aptasia. Has anyone else had this happen? Just wondering because I do have some zoos. Should I get a Copperband Butterfly? I've heard they can get nippy with corals. Link to comment
birdman204 Posted October 4, 2004 Share Posted October 4, 2004 Your best bet, as mentioned before, is to try to stop the spread through nutrient control, (i.e. feed the same amount of food, but at more than 1 time a day). If that doesn't work, a berghia nudi may work, but I HAVE had experience with them eating zoanthus. A CBButterfly will not fare well , even in a 50 G, they will , for long term success, require a tank of 100G or more to thrive. Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.