Aptasia in Polyp colony's

[nater]

i have a couple of zoanthid and paly colony's that have a few aptasia anemone growing in them. my question would be is there any method of safely removing the aptasia with out killing the colony or polyps that are near. in one colony what ever i use will probably come in contact with the polyp near the aptasia. i can remove said colony's , can i use a scalpel or sharp knife outside the aquarium? any help appreciated

 

[Murfman]

I have had good success with an Aptasia zapper, killing them off, among my zoas.

 

[Dowtish]

I have used boiling water in a syringe in these cases. Inject directly into the aiptasia and it will just melt away. I cannot say for sure that it won't release spores or whatever they do while doing this, but you won't kill any polyps either.

 

[nater]

i might be able to find a aptasia wand to borrow. the boiling water sounds good , i could pull that piece and isolate it in a separate small tank and kill it there.

 

[Murfman]

If you take it out of the tank, cut it out with a razor and then superglue over where it was.

 

[Dowtish]

most aiptasia quickly disappear into the rock or polyp colony when they are messed with.( i.e. a razorblade) That's why I used the syringe, you can come at it slowly and it doesnt know what hit it.

 

[nater]

yeah , i might do a two step approach , hit it with boiling water , then seal the spot with a little glue to cover anything that may be left over.