Montipora Eating Nudis

[Ladder Man]

I found one on a small frag that has been in the tank for around six weeks that had a dead spot on it. All other monti frags looked unaffected, but I pulled them all, dipped, scrubbed bottoms and put into QT. I didn't find any other nudis which seemed odd. I am assuming I will need to QT for months, but wanted to get any other advice or opinions.

 

[maroun.c]

I would QT and dip weekly for at least 6 weeks

 

[Ladder Man]

Thanks, sounds like I am on the right track. Am I right in assuming there is basically no chance it is only one? I see some people saying they can live in the tank without montis for six months. Does that sound right? I have a possum wrasse and I just ordered a yellow coris to help.

 

[Marine Betta]

Thanks, sounds like I am on the right track. Am I right in assuming there is basically no chance it is only one? I see some people saying they can live in the tank without montis for six months. Does that sound right? I have a possum wrasse and I just ordered a yellow coris to help.

Good call on placing them in QT. I’ve dealt with these once before on a singular montipora frag. I didn’t know what they were at the time, but they killed the monti in a matter of days. I would leave the montis out for at least 3 months, but I have heard some people reporting seeing them after a year of keeping the tank without montis. I can’t say if people who report seeing them after that long somehow accidentally reintroduced them or not. I doubt they could go that long without their food source, but maybe someone else can chime in on that.

I’m not sure which dip you use, but Coral RX or Revive should work. Unfortunately, I doubt that was the only nudibranch considering the monti had been in your tank for 6 weeks, and there probably eggs as well. The eggs are really small, so they can be hard to see. The dip won’t affect the eggs. You can check for them underneath the coral or on the nearby rocks. I suggest dipping weekly for at least 4 weeks. The wrasses might help some, but there’s a chance they won’t touch them and eat other things. Even if they do eat them, I don’t know how much if any time they’ll take off the fallow period.

 

[maroun.c]

Thanks, sounds like I am on the right track. Am I right in assuming there is basically no chance it is only one? I see some people saying they can live in the tank without montis for six months. Does that sound right? I have a possum wrasse and I just ordered a yellow coris to help.

i doubt it would be only one in the tank, this would be extreme lucky.
quarantine and weekly dip for 6 weeks is to guaranty the frags or what survives of them is clean of nudis, i would still hold them for at least 3 months in Qt before returning to tank. as for the comment of nudis surviving for a full year without montis in the tank is more likely in the case of tanks with monti colonies where taking the monties out is not completely possible and tiny parts remain in the tank where their growth and nudis survival somehow auto adjusts or it couuld be the case ofa re infection of nudis that go unnoticed in QT and are returned to the tank with the montis... i doubt a nudi can survive past weeks or 2-3 months without monti for food.

 

[Marine Betta]

Thanks, sounds like I am on the right track. Am I right in assuming there is basically no chance it is only one? I see some people saying they can live in the tank without montis for six months. Does that sound right? I have a possum wrasse and I just ordered a yellow coris to help.

i doubt it would be only one in the tank, this would be extreme lucky.
quarantine and weekly dip for 6 weeks is to guaranty the frags or what survives of them is clean of nudis, i would still hold them for at least 3 months in Qt before returning to tank. as for the comment of nudis surviving for a full year without montis in the tank is more likely in the case of tanks with monti colonies where taking the monties out is not completely possible and tiny parts remain in the tank where their growth and nudis survival somehow auto adjusts or it couuld be the case ofa re infection of nudis that go unnoticed in QT and are returned to the tank with the montis... i doubt a nudi can survive past weeks or 2-3 months without monti for food.

My thoughts exactly. I find it hard to believe that such a tiny animal could go dormant for so long. Berghia, for example, can survive a couple of weeks without aiptasia but not much longer than that. I don’t see why monti eating nudibranchs would be any different.

At the end of QT (say 3 months), I think it would be a good idea to do one final dip to make sure nothing comes off of the montis. If more nudibranchs come off, put them back in QT and start the weekly dips again.

 

[Ladder Man]

Thanks for the help everyone.

 

[tbrown]

Curious how this turned out for you?

I had some around 4 years ago. I found, removed, and killed a total of 4. Never found eggs and never found more after that but I did have a few "pest defense" fish.