PROBLEM! Something Small Is Eating My Zoas!!

[AquaDen]

Just wondering if anyone can help?? I have a 7 gallon Nano and I found something eating the heads of my zoas. This creature is also eating the part of the zoas where they are spreading on the rock!! If anyone is from up north and know what a potato bug is then that is what it looks like. Only about a 1/32 of an inch long (maybe smaller) and is clear and with a ton of small legs. Very small but intrusive. I saw a couple of them in the tank about a week ago and they have multiplied drastically. I do not have any fish in the tank, only reef because I am in the process of moving. If someone might know what it is and know of a fish that might eat the pest please let me know. I tried taking a picture but they are too small. Any help is appreciated!
Gary

[AquaDen]

Some type of amphipod??

[cbianco]

Sounds like a flatworm. If I am not mistaking there is a specific flatworm that targets Zoanthids (not sure to the name).

Can somebody second this?

EDIT: If you can't take a picture, can you atleast draw a picture (MS Paint) for us? We like pictures :P

Christopher

[JimD]

A flatworm with legs? hhmmm... Try www.wetwebmedia.com to try to ID it. First thing that came to my mind was some type of nudibrach.

[AquaDen]

From what I have now found they are amphipods. Anyone know how to get rid of them? I have read that a goby, wrasse and other fish may eat them. Does anyone know a fish that will for sure eat them?
Also I have read that many people believe that amphipods will not harm any coral and that amphipods only eat what is already dying. Other people (me being one of them) believe that if they do not have anything that is dying to eat off of then they will resort to small live corals. My zoas surely are healthy and I know for a fact they are not dying and the amphipods are munching on them!! Any suggestions on a fish that will help?

[cbianco]

A flatworm with legs? hhmmm... Try www.wetwebmedia.com to try to ID it. First thing that came to my mind was some type of nudibrach.

Nudibranchs don't have legs either. I was just thinking of the oval shape of the pill bug. Then again I have never had nudibrachs or flatworms before so I consider myself lucky for never seeing them in person :roll

I hope its just some sort of -pod.

Christopher

[JimD]

I know that, when I first read the begining of the post, nudis were the first thing that came to mind. Zoos and nudis seem to go together these days.

[AquaDen]

Christopher, Got a picture for you. This is the little beast!!

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r163/aquaden/amp.jpg

[cbianco]

They're good guys! Leave them be!

:lol

The -pods are most likely not eating your zoanthids, just the crud around them. Most -pods eat waste and decaying stuff. I would take a harder look at your tank and see what they are really eating or if you miss identified your critter. All in all, you want -pods in your tank.

Christopher

[AquaDen]

I have read that many people believe that amphipods will not harm any coral and that amphipods only eat what is already dying. Other people (me being one of them) believe that if they do not have anything that is dying to eat off of then they will resort to small live corals. My zoas surely are healthy and I know for a fact they are not dying and the amphipods are munching on them!

[cbianco]

I would take a harder look at your tank and see what they are really eating or if you miss identified your critter.

Sorry, I added some info to the above after the fact.

To my knowledge, amphipods are herbivores or eat detritus.

Christopher

[AquaDen]

I have had these in my other tanks and since I had fish the population stayed way down. I have tons of copepods in the nano as well. I am thinking that since I do not have any fish to keep the pods down in population that the pod population is becoming overwhelming. I believe since the pods do not have anything to eat that they are resorting to the zoas? I have read so many different things and this seems to be logical? Ill get a wrasse tomorrow to take care of them...

[JimD]

Google image search "isopod" if you say it looks like a potato bug, this may be the culpret.

[JimD]

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://meanderthal.typepad.com/dope/images/isopod.jpg&imgrefurl=http://meanderthal.typepad.com/dope/invertebrates/index.html&h=592&w=500&sz=108&hl=en&start=26&tbnid =p7UVQKZipruxLM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=114&prev=/images%3Fq%3Disopod%26start%3D18%26ndsp%3D18%26svn um%3D10%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4GFRB_enUS206US206%26s a%3DN

Click on the pic in the upper left hand corner.

[lhoy]

Wouldn't it probably be a "zoa spider"? See http://www.zoaid.com/index.php?module=Gallery2&g2_itemId=396

You can pull it out with tweezer's or such. I have found one before. They can wreck havoc.

Lee

[AquaDen]

The critter I found is identical to the picture I posted. I have to figure out how to lower the population.

[Richard]

A scooter blenny would clean up the amphipods quickly. They usually take to frozen foods well so it would be something you could leave in the tank.

[taldrich13]

Maybe throw a little food in there to keep them from resorting to eating the zoas?

[thedude]

Amphipods will in no way, shape, or form eat a healthy zooanthid polyp regardless of what you've read on the internet. They are a tiny crustacean that feeds of detritus, algal and bacterial films, etc... and are present in EVERY reef tank whether you see them or not.

Lowering the population is absolutely NOT necessary as if anything, these guys are cleaning up dead or decaying matter. There are just about three small creatures (I can think of) that specifically target zoos; sundial snails, nudibranchs, and zooanthid eating spiders.

This is a good id page for amphipods and spiders: http://www.melevsreef.com/id/pods.html

Here is a picture of a sundial snail: http://www.melevsreef.com/id/snails.html

Anyone online who is telling you that amphipods are eating your zooanthids are very, very, misinformed.

John

[DaBird47]

cyclops would keep everyone happy...

[Jeff]

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=996195 this is an interesting read.

[Richard]

I know for a fact they are not dying and the amphipods are munching on them!

I have never seen amphipods do anything harmful but if he knows it for a fact then he knows it for a fact. That's why I just made a suggestion of what might be a good control.

If someone told me that they had a maroon clown that was literally eating the BTA they put in the tank, well, I wouldn't believe it. Except for the fact that that it was my maroon clown and I sat there and watched it chow down. So, you never know ;)

[DaBird47]

just goes to show ya, its always something... :wacko

[thedude]

Richard,

Sorry, not trying to trump your information at all as I agree with it completely if you are trying to rid your tank of amphipods.

The problem is this, the biology and experience I have with amphipods is that they do not consume living coral tissue. I personally, feel that the thread linked on reefcentral, is a type of hysteria that often happens when large groups of people get together. Find me 1 million people online, I guarantee I can find 4 of them that will agree to anything (then the old snowball affect begins).

Anything is always possible I suppose but the picture and information given, lead me to believe that it is a common, garden variety scavenger (feeding on decay, detritus, and algae/baceteria films).

If this is a new colony I would seriously suggest looking for sundial snails or dipping the colony in some type of coral dip. Perhaps, your zoos have a bacerial infection of sorts and what you are seeing is the amphipods cleaning up the mess.

John

[Jeff]

there are so many different types of pods that there is no way to know which ones are which and what will do what. don't forget, red bugs are pods also.

[brewercm]

I had a sundial snail in one of my zoo colonies once and I'd see him then he'd dissapear for a day or two. Finally caught him out again and plucked him from the colony.