tzink Posted February 18, 2021 Share Posted February 18, 2021 Sorry if this is obvious. I checked the sticky! Fuzzy thing that's wrapped around a few polyps on this zoa. Not sure if the photos are clear. It's on the bottom right of the frag. Ideas? Quote Link to comment
Craig. Posted February 18, 2021 Share Posted February 18, 2021 Probably some kind of algae? Also looks like a vermetid snail on there - best to remove with some pliers 1 Quote Link to comment
tzink Posted February 18, 2021 Author Share Posted February 18, 2021 Interesting. There is a barnacle on the side, but I can't find a snail... Where do you see it? Quote Link to comment
Tired Posted February 18, 2021 Share Posted February 18, 2021 That pointy thing sticking up is the vermatid. Vermatids make a tube that they stay in, they don't crawl around. They put out a sticky mucus net to catch food, which can irritate corals. For future reference, it's best not to handle zoas with your bare hands, even by the plug. Some are pretty toxic. They're safe enough with some basic precautions, but you do have to take the precautions. Quote Link to comment
tzink Posted February 18, 2021 Author Share Posted February 18, 2021 Got it. Thank you! Quote Link to comment
tzink Posted February 19, 2021 Author Share Posted February 19, 2021 Update: The fuzzy thing was purple under regular lighting and was definitely an animal of some kind--worm or something. When I poked it, it retracted. Anyway, went to town with the bone cutters and a tooth brush and took care of both worm and vermatid. I had to remove quite a bit of rock and plug before I got to the root of both. Also spotted a vermatid on another frag, now that I knew what to look for. I will continue to monitor to make sure they're gone. Thanks for the help! 2 Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 1, 2021 Share Posted March 1, 2021 IMO, Vermitids are overrated as a problem....they are an irritant, but mostly to the tank keeper. You're likely to prick your finger on their tubes when you put your hand where you can't see. Irritation to corals in temporary, and IMO barely counts as irritating. We mostly didn't worry about minor things like Vermitids when I was starting out – unless it's outright harmful, it's considered part of the ecosystem – so my tank is rife with Vermitids. My plating and encrusting stony corals grow right up to them...360º around them...and eventually over the top of them. I don't recall them getting on my branching stonies in the past, and they don't seem to have an effect on the one birdsnest I have left....a giant pink colony of Pocillopora. They do grow all over the underneath of the colony though. Mushrooms (my only non-stony) obviously could care less about Vermitids because they don't care about anything. All that said, if you can control them now while the tank is young and there are only a few of them, I doubt you or the tank would miss them in the long run. (Although honestly I really can't say what effect, if any, the Vermitids actually have on my system. Even after living with them for 10-12 years they seem like a neutral presence.) 2 Quote Link to comment
Tired Posted March 2, 2021 Share Posted March 2, 2021 I had them in my previous tank, and they're in the tanks at my LFS. They don't seem to be that bad. They are worth removing when they're right on a frag, though, since that would mean the mucus net might go over the coral. 2 Quote Link to comment
king aiptasia Posted March 2, 2021 Share Posted March 2, 2021 On 3/1/2021 at 12:41 PM, mcarroll said: IMO, Vermitids are overrated as a problem....they are an irritant, but mostly to the tank keeper. You're likely to prick your finger on their tubes when you put your hand where you can't see. Irritation to corals in temporary, and IMO barely counts as irritating. We mostly didn't worry about minor things like Vermitids when I was starting out – unless it's outright harmful, it's considered part of the ecosystem – so my tank is rife with Vermitids. My plating and encrusting stony corals grow right up to them...360º around them...and eventually over the top of them. I don't recall them getting on my branching stonies in the past, and they don't seem to have an effect on the one birdsnest I have left....a giant pink colony of Pocillopora. They do grow all over the underneath of the colony though. Mushrooms (my only non-stony) obviously could care less about Vermitids because they don't care about anything. All that said, if you can control them now while the tank is young and there are only a few of them, I doubt you or the tank would miss them in the long run. (Although honestly I really can't say what effect, if any, the Vermitids actually have on my system. Even after living with them for 10-12 years they seem like a neutral presence.) they used to be major reef builders once upon a time 1 Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 2, 2021 Share Posted March 2, 2021 4 hours ago, king aiptasia said: they used to be major reef builders once upon a time Any good links on them? It's been a while since I looked, but the info on them always seemed scanty. I'm fascinated because they are a sessile snail. How cool is that? Quote Link to comment
king aiptasia Posted March 3, 2021 Share Posted March 3, 2021 1 hour ago, mcarroll said: Any good links on them? It's been a while since I looked, but the info on them always seemed scanty. I'm fascinated because they are a sessile snail. How cool is that? i cant seem to send pdf through here Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 3, 2021 Share Posted March 3, 2021 Sometimes you can link them in-line, but the site may try to parse them for text. I think you can tell it to stop. (I could be wrong on all this...I haven't tried in a while.) Can you post the DOI or title of the article? Quote Link to comment
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