aptasia

[beagleton]

ive got a serious aptasia problem. my entire tank is covered with the stuff. i tried some of the berghia about a year ago but could only afford four of them (theyre kinda expensive) and that did nothing. the aptasia pop has exploded since then and i am thinking of trying pepermint shrimp. my concern is that the little bugger will eat all sorts of other stuff that i want to keep. is this something i should be worried about? im preaty sure he'll take out my BTA and although my clarki will be sad i can do without it. im more concerned about my coral. do they eat coral? if so what kind?

[::pete::]

Get a copperband

[Ram_Puppy]

or bhergia from larry/instar

[beagleton]

copperband? i assume some sort of shrimp. do you know the full name or latin name?

[cbianco]

If you wanted use a chemical you could use pickling lime. Remember that pickling lime will raise your pH and kill any and everything it touches.

I have tried various solutions to rid myself of these anemones and the pickling lime was most successful but most harmful.

Christopher

[gjuarez]

A copperband is a butterfly fish and they are voracious aptasia eaters.

[hobogato]

sometimes they are voracious aptasia eaters, but there is supposedly a false copperband that wont eat aptasia but will eat soft corals. dont remember the thread where i read that tho.

[LoneStar]

Copperbanded Butterfly fish

http://www.saltwaterfish.com/site_11_03/product_info.php?products_id=215&parent_category=4 &category_search=61&root_parent_id=4&PHPSESSID=6d3 c54633d5da3e651fb4a7d59ea3700

I'm not sure what size of tank you have but make sure you got room for them. Their on the medium size (4" or so). They average $30-35.

[C.Mydas]

We've had 2 copperbands not make it. Instar (Larry) told us that they are so shy that if you want to increase their chances of survival keep them in a quite tank w/ plenty of hiding spaces for about 2 weeks until they are eating. BTW- they will only eat the small ones.

[LoneStar]

Yeah, sometimes its a hit or miss with these fish. Very delicate in keeping so be prepared in watching these guys and seeing if they are eating or not. I had one that was doing great then one day did not eat anything. Next morning it was crab food >_< The one I have now is doing fine, though its not really munching on the few aptasia I have in the tank....

[Ram_Puppy]

keep in mind that copperbands eat other things you may want in your tank too. featherdusters, clams, etc... larry I think says if you add these things before you add the copperband and allow them to de-stress and settle in, that the copper band won't have a feeding response to them.

Bhergia are a perfect packge, all they eat is aiptasia.

[Richard]

You should also keep in mind that since aiptasia are not photosynthetic they require a food source to thrive. So if they are "exploding" in your tank you should take a good look at your water quality, feeding routine, detritus buildup, etc.

Keeping your water quality/aquarium pristine and avoiding feeding the aiptasia will make ridding your tank of them that much easier.

Larry is a perfect example, he has to WORK to grow enough aiptasia for his berghia.

[::pete::]

I purchased mune at Alamo Aquatics for 35.00 and I watched it eat well actually I stood there for 20 minutes on the phone with a member until it ate :P
I took it on the spot and it cleaned my tank out. I grow aptaisa in my overflow to add to my tank!!

[mathias]

when I swapped tanks to a bigger one I only had one loss and it was my copperband he was the greatest got rid of all my aiptasia followed my clowns everywhere they went and ate flake food, and everythng else... It was a sad sad day....


but if your shopping for one please see if it eats at the store first.... becasue do to the stress they will starve themselves.....

[Ram_Puppy]

I have to admit, I am biased, but CB pets is probably the only place I would buy one, from seeing how they dose w/ copper in their quarantine tanks and knowing the experiences of people like GaryP who have bought from them, it's a first rate setup. These guys can come in loaded w/ parasites, Mark and Richard will make sure you get a healthy one.

[NaCl_H2O]

Gotta agree with Ram - Get your CBBs at CB ;) I have tried several time to get a CBB and in all but one case they were gone within 30 days. First one I ever bought at CB thrived from the first day.

I have tried Berghia from Larry twice, and have never been able to get a "herd" growing. Maybe water flow, or a spike in a parameter that kept them from taking hold. The CBBs in my tanks keep the Aptasia cleaned out, and the featherdusters too ... oh well!

[beagleton]

where is cb pets? sa? austin?

[NaCl_H2O]

where is cb pets? sa? austin?

<-- See "Pet Store Listings"


20475 State Highway 46 W
Spring Branch, TX 78070
(830) 980-7380

[Darth-Tater]

CB Pets is just up 281 in Spring Branch. Well worth the trip :D


DT