Eliminating Blue Clove Polyps with Fenbendazole

[menglish]

These critters are so difficult to get rid of.
As for mine, yes, they are back
i have been thinking what to do next. I did try a tuxedo urchin a few weeks ago and to my great pleasure, they were completely cleaning everything off the rock, including the polyps and coraline algae. Unfortunately, the urchin died days after.
Since then, i have been trying to get more urchins from my LFSs. I am planning to put a bunch of small ones in the tank. Hopefully they will develop an appetite for the polyps.
dont know what else to try

 

[Daveobrien]

So we're in the same boat. reply AND PM me if you have any new insights.

One thing I've been thinking of is an experiment tank. A dedicated quarantine tank, to TRY new approaches to kill these things - so I don't have to inflict it on the main display tank. For example, switching sources of medication and double tapping. Easier to try on a separated rock, than main tank.

(My thought is the throw away the separated rock at the end of the experiments. I'm not trying to save it.)

 

[Daveobrien]

I got an interesting option to try from my local reef club, going to try a Silver Scat.

Copperband butterflies may help. I’ve heard some foxfaces may have a taste for clove polyps, and a cheat option are silver scats, which are coral friendly but known to eat clove polyps (and actually a fully marine fish despite being called “brackish”).

 

[Nalini Akolekar]

I got an interesting option to try from my local reef club, going to try a Silver Scat.

Did you try the Silver Scat? Any luck?

 

[Corey Baker]

I am very curious about this product and its affects again Xenia... i dont have the CP infestation but the large purple Xenia is out of control. I tear the stuff off by the handful but it eventually pops up somewhere. Let me know if you think this stuff could help as i say others mention this product did have an effect on Xenia. Thanks!

 

[menglish]

I think it will kill your xenia and any GSP

 

[Corey Baker]

Thank you but when i hear "i think" i worry... hahah. Cany anyone confirm if this will eradicate Xenia and be okay for BTA, open brain and sps corals?

 

[menglish]

I know it does not affect BTAs and SPS and brain corals.
I am fairly confident i read in the thread that it will kill xenias

 

[Corey Baker]

Is this the stuff? A dewormer?

 

[menglish]

yep,
a dog dewormer.
go figure. it comes in different packages

 

[Daveobrien]

Did you try the Silver Scat? Any luck?

Yes, Added one. Super cute, and addition to the tank. Holds it's own, and Fast. Jury is still out if it's touching clove polyps yet.

 

[Reefasaurus X]

I super appreciate all of you who’ve taken calculated risks to create a knowledge base around this and have put the effort into documenting it. These polyps are a huge pain for those of us who have infestations. I’m preparing to treat my tank and I just have one unanswered question.. Do we know definitively that fenbendazole will harm leather corals? Most of you mentioned that you’ve removed them first. Has anyone left any leather corals in their tank while treating? If so, what happened?

 

[Reefasaurus X]

-My tank with brown polyp patches.
-The leathers I’m considering keeping in the tank during treatment.
-Close-up of the polyps.

 

[Reefasaurus X]

So does anyone have experience using fenbendazole with leather corals in their tank? Did they live or die?

 

[scchase]

Look what I found

 

[Peanut]

So does anyone have experience using fenbendazole with leather corals in their tank? Did they live or die?

They will die...and so will the gsp

 

[Peanut]

Thank you but when i hear "i think" i worry... hahah. Cany anyone confirm if this will eradicate Xenia and be okay for BTA, open brain and sps corals?

confirmed it will kill Xenia. confirmed I now have 4 BTA that was either 1 or 2 at the time of treatment, and has split since. confirmed I have many many sps that were never affected by treatment.

go for it.

 

[Peanut]

Everything went very well, even my fire shrimp and pistol shrimp made it. Just started adding the snails in about 4 days ago and all are still alive and kickin.

All BCP are gone with out a trace. I have alittle algae bloom happening but the snails are taking care of it, nothing really to worry about. All the live stock is thriving .

The dose was a success. Just be patient and let the meds take it’s course. I used the safe guard 1g packets and used 1 and a half packets for 135 gals I figure with all the rock.

are you still bcp free?

I really think the last step you took with the toothbrush is critical to killing off anything at all that might have survived treatment

 

[Peanut]

Not sure if this has been done, didn't have time to read 17 pages...
Just want to start a list of items it will affect. please copy, paste and add to anything you found effected. thanks! Here's what I've gathered..

Blue clove polyps
Leathers
Xenia
Pipe organ
Green Start polyps
Snails
Hydroids
Coco worms
Kenya tree
Blue ridge coral
grandis palys

I did have some Colt Corals (in the leather family) in a frag tank on the same system that did not make it.

Grandis Palys are not affected by the Fenbendazole at all. I have 2 large colonies in the tank

 

[Peanut]

Look what I found

can you tell from the packaging what year they were made?