Aiptasia in Sump!

[sergiotami]

Got home from work last night, turned on light to my sump and noticed them! Whats the best way to treat them? If I remove all the rock and treat rock, wont that also kill the copepods that feed my mandarin in my tank? If I dont treat, then eventually they make their way to my tank?:at_wits_end:

[Big_Pun]

i wouldnt worry about killing a whole pod population, most are in your rock work in your display, its a very misleading statement made all over the web that all your pods live in sump and then go to your display. They are everywhere in your system especially if its a mature system.

[sergiotami]

Whats the best way to treat? Would you reef dip all rock in sump?

[Troy Valentine]

I had some in my sump from a piece of live rock I got from another hobbiest, 2 peppermints did the trick for me. Within weeks they were all gone.... Move quickly though they will find their way up to your display.

[jcnkt_ellis]

How will they move to the display? I was under the impression that they don't move around like "good" anemones and only propagate by splitting in the home aquarium. Wouldn't this take a long while for them to even spread off the rock they're on? Plus, to me, the only way they would get to the main display is by committing suicide in the return pump and having their pieces blown out by the return. Has this happened to anyone?

[Troy Valentine]

At the time it was years since I added anything to the display, soon after the aptasia showed up in the sump I started noticeing them in my display... This is the only thing I can contribute the appearance of them in the display. Never had an issue with them before I introduced the infected rock. From what I've read they are able to reproduce sexually and asexualy and able to regenerate from a single cell... Amazing survivors....

[Troy Valentine]

This is an excerpt from an article I found on Salty Underground.com

Asexual

Aiptasia reproduce asexually by pedal laceration. Small masses of cells are pinched or torn off the margins of the pedal disk forming small buds. These grow slowly into buds and within a week or two after completely separating from the foot the bud develops a mouth and small tentacles and begins to feed on its own. Some of these clones will release and be distributed in the water column to colonize other locations. Additionally, Aiptasia demonstrates a preferential tolerance to its own clones and will not sting them. This allows large groupings of Aiptasia clones to form as a result of asexual reproduction.

Unlike some cnidarians, Aiptasia are extremely successful in generating or regenerating an entire animal from a single cell. It is because of this that physical removal is so difficult to perform successfully.

Aiptasia increase asexual reproductive basal lacerates during times of extreme stress such as low oxygen, decreased circulation during power failures, low lighting situations, attack by predators or when the aquarist attempts physical or chemical methods of removal.

Sexual

While there is little scientific documentation on the sexual reproduction within Aiptasia, general observations indicate the sexual reproduction may occur in two forms.

In the case of the well-studied Aiptasia pallida and Aiptasia pulchella, individuals are dioecious, meaning that individuals are of separate sexes. During spawning, anemones release their gametes into the water where fertilization occurs. The resulting zygote becomes a free swimming planula larva which eventually settles onto a suitable substrate and undergoes metamorphosis to become a small polyp. Newly produced larvae are aposymbiotic meaning they do not contain symbionts. The larvae or newly settled polyps acquire symbiotic algae from the environment.

In certain species of Aiptasia fertilization may be internal, in the coelenteron. Male gametes are released from male Aiptasia into the water column. These gametes are non-buoyant and settle to fertilize the female gametes within other Aiptasia. These gametes develop internal to the Aiptasia into Planula Larva, receiving nourishment from the hosting anemone. When conditions are optimal (light and nutrients are high), or during physical attack (as when an aquarist is attempting to remove them), these larva are released into the water column to start growing and colonizing other parts of the reef.

[Big_Pun]

i love when Troy chimes in i always learn something!!

you could pull out individual rocks and boil freeze burn or attempt to use apatasia X and lil by lil try and get each one. depends on how bad the infestation is. i had them in my overflow and sump but i had peps in display so i never saw them(my old 70G)

[sergiotami]

Anyone in Victoria got a couple of peps they could spare???