Aiphtasia out of nowhere… or place I trust(ed)

[bushdoc]

I have 20 gal Frag tank, where I keep newly purchased frags.
I was examining coral today to see if I can place it in DT in a week or two and then I discovered 2 sizeable Aiptasia anemones attached to frag plugs, one on top of plug, other under the (different) plug.
I gently applied Kalk paste to their bodies( to enhance their growth of course) and obviously decided not to place corals in DT (yet). I am going to get few peppermint shrimps as apparently they (sometimes) have a palate for Aiptasia.
My 140 gal DT is based on Aussie and Tampa Bay Live Rock and has been running for a year, so far without any pests.
My frag tank has got only some biomedia brick and hang on filter.( no live rock)
My coral frags are from “trusted” LFS, where I have never seen Aiptasia before and online “reputable” vendor.
My Conclussions:

• Trusted vendor is a misleading term
• Always quarantine ALL your newly acquired fish, corals, critters
• If you are establishing your tank on Dry Rock, because you don’t want “pests”, you might have big surprise, later on

Oh, and have a Kalk ready, even if you are not dosing it, you never know when it might become handy

 

[patrickjbuie]

I had an aptasia problem a while ago, picked up a file fish. Problem solved...

 

[DJF]

Sound conclusions. Certain pests are near impossible to keep out. (Aptasia & asterinas) Part of my “ebb and flow” of reefing is addressing issues. Where is the fun in a pristine tank?

Peppermints are hit/miss but can definitely keep things in check. File fish are another good option and butterfly fish (try to get one already eating frozen) but can turn on coral. Problem with aptasia is that they are like cockroaches- if you see 2, sadly you can bet there are more.

 

[CasperOe]

I have had luck with an australian stripey - they are terribly hard to get your hands on in my part of the world these days though sadly..

 

[bushdoc]

BTW, not like I never had Aiptasia before. I do not find it particularly bothersome and generally easy to either eradicate or keep under control, by either chemical, mechanical or biological means.
I had more issues with Majanos and eventually had to brake the tank down due to it.
Strangely few Majanos found a way into my former "hold up tank", but never really multiplied, so it all depends on the condition, biodiversity and stage of your tank and many , but not all of so called "Pests" will eventually stop being bothersome.I feel like 'pests" are a part of reefing.
Thanks All for the input and happy reefing!

 

[nothing_fancy]

Having just dealt with a bout of montipora eating nudibranchs, aiptasia IMO is the easiest "pest" to get rid of. Personally I will leave a few around for a bit until my maintenance day, doesn't bother me. I also feel like aiptasia is tough to avoid in the biome. I think managing it is really all you can do. Kill them if you see them, they wont be around for a while, then you'll see some, kill them, the process continues. To me, unless they get out of control, they are really just unsightly, never caused probs for me with coral