Shrimp-like things eating coral

[Erin2e]

I have a 3 month old tank and woke up to a bunch of these crawling all over my one and only coral plug. What are they? Are they bad? If so, how do I get rid of them?

[dling]

14 minutes ago, Erin2e said:

I have a 3 month old tank and woke up to a bunch of these crawling all over my one and only coral plug. What are they? Are they bad? If so, how do I get rid of them?

All I can see is the thermometer. 

[Erin2e]

You can see one on the thermometer just above the red bulb at the bottom.

[RedCrow]

Amphipods. The backbone of a healthy reef 

[Tired]

Amphipods. Great fish food. They can be a problem if you have a lot of them, or if they aren't getting enough food, because they can wind up going after corals. Usually they only attack sick coral, so I would check if your parameters are all good. I've had them start bothering healthy zoas, though. 

[Erin2e]

So they’re going after my zoa plug! What should I feed them to keep them off it?

[Break]

8 minutes ago, Erin2e said:

So they’re going after my zoa plug! What should I feed them to keep them off it?

A small bit of phytoplankton or something Reef Roids will do. Just be sure you don't feed too much or their population will rise and you'll have more of an issue since they'll require more food.

 

How long has the coral been in the tank? Are the zoas closed or acting different than normal? Is there damage visible? What are your water parameters?

 

In my case, they usually eat the zoa mat before going for the lashes or main polyp head. It's also possible they are just eating algae or something in/around the zoas.

 

How big is the tank? Do you have any fish in it currently? Larger tanks with more food available or fish that eat pods are generally the best way to keep their numbers in check and is why most folks don't have any issues with amphipods.

[Erin2e]

It’s a 40 gallon tank. I currently have a fire fish, clownfish, peppermint shrimp, BT nem, emerald crab and a couple snails.

 

Ill test tomorrow but my parameters were normal last time I tested and everything looks good. The zoas are opening and closing like normal but it looks like they’re eating the back and front of the zoas base.

[Break]

18 minutes ago, Erin2e said:

It’s a 40 gallon tank. I currently have a fire fish, clownfish, peppermint shrimp, BT nem, emerald crab and a couple snails.

 

Ill test tomorrow but my parameters were normal last time I tested and everything looks good. The zoas are opening and closing like normal but it looks like they’re eating the back and front of the zoas base.

If it looks like they are eating the zoa mat, the best move would to be to get the frag plug out of reach for the time being. One of those magnet type frag racks would work well and they are pretty easy to find. You can even DIY one in a pinch by supergluing something to a magnet glass cleaner, if need be.

 

If you want to confirm the pods are doing it, I would recommend checking the tank with a red flashlight after the lights have gone out. Sounds like you've already caught them in the act though.

 

Since you have the space in the tank I would look into getting a wrasse of some kind, like a sixline or a pink streaked - they're not nocturnal (quite the opposite actually), but are great at hunting and reducing all kinds of pests. Since Zoanthids are prone to more pests than most corals, wrasses are great utilitarian fish to have around. Damsels and Dottybacks/Psuedochromis will go after pods a bit too, but can also be total dicks to everything else in the tank.

[Tired]

I second the wrasse. Possum wrasses are a bit rare to find for sale, but are adorable, and perfectly suited for small tanks.