Outcompetition amoung critter question

[LadyTang2]

Do certain critters outcompete other critters of a similar or even different type to a large enough extent in aquaria that it is a worthwhile consideration to plan the introduction of one type, specifically to suppress or prevent the bad type from flourishing? Sorry this was hard for me to word. I.e. ghost flatworms to discourage other flatworms, or copepods to discourage red bugs, or munnid isopods to discourage cirolanids?

What, if any, are the most noteworthy examples of critters you should introduce to prevent worse critters from thriving, please list any you can think of regardless if they are related or not! Even fish I suppose!

 

[Malifry97]

intersting...

 

[LadyTang2]

Bump!

 

[Malifry97]

Bump

 

[BloopFish]

The question is similar to how we grow macroalgae to outcompete microalgae right? In a similar case sponges use up lots of silicates, which could prevent diatom growth? Your question largely concerns which ecological niche each pest takes up, in terms of diet, and if any other creature might outcompete it for the same resource. Due to this, I think we will find that because we are looking at direct resource competition rather than predation we will not find many cases where a "good creature" will outcompete a "bad creature" for things that eat corals and such. For things that are mainly just "bad" in terms of being an eyesore, like fireworms, I'd say theres a good possibility.

 

[Infidel]

Yellow "Coris" Wrasses, Six-Line Wrasses, Four-Line Wrasses, and White Belly Wrasses are several of the more popular wrasses for controlling various "pest" worms and snails in a reef tank.

The Bristletail Filefish and Copper Banded Butterfly are good at killing Aptasia. Peppermint shrimp will also supposedly eat Aptasia, but I have never witnessed it.

There is usually a species available to combat another "undesirable" species.

In regard to the rest of your inquiry, I believe it would really depend on the life in question. Some creatures of the same genus will dominate others (of the same genus, but a different species) and snuff out the weaker life form while other life forms may produce hybrids in the same situation.

 

[lapin]

Same sort of question

QUESTION OF THE DAY - The MUST HAVE workers in your tank that really earn their keep!

I think most have a CUC added for that purpose. As far as fish go, I would never add one to do a specific job. As has been mentioned, that can backfire. However, if a fish I like happens to benefit the tank in some way, that is a bonus.

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Infidel]

Also, if you have a refugium full of macro algae, stable water parameters, well established and balanced aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, a solid CUC etc., you will find that you probably don't have GHA in your system.

 

[LadyTang2]

@Crabs McJones or @Flippers4pups might know of more and perhaps lesser known examples.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Not sure about critters outcompeting critters. I can help with predators to remove critters. Wrasse for flatworms, chaeto for algae, arrow crab for bristleworms, and harlequin shrimp for asterina. But not positive on using critters to battle critters. Following along for others thoughts and ideas

 

[LadyTang2]

Not sure about critters outcompeting critters. I can help with predators to remove critters. Wrasse for flatworms, chaeto for algae, arrow crab for bristleworms, and harlequin shrimp for asterina. But not positive on using critters to battle critters. Following along for others thoughts and ideas

Agreed! Crabs, are there downsides to keeping arrow crabs and or harlequin shrimp in your tank or is it mostly just positives? Coral nibblers? Thanks!

 

[Crabs McJones]

Agreed! Crabs, are there downsides to keeping arrow crabs and or harlequin shrimp in your tank or is it mostly just positives? Coral nibblers? Thanks!

Mostly positives, however, a single harlequin can wipe out a tanks population of starfish quick, so you may need to rehome or purchase starfish for it to consume so it doesnt starve.

 

[LadyTang2]

@Sonofives @Cnidoblast @Mike_J I've seen some great posts from these contributors as well, any ideas folks?

 

[LadyTang2]

About wrasses and montipora eating nudi's, I've always thought of them as keeping the problem at bay but not eliminating the problem.

I see some posts where people believe wrassses fully eliminated them, can this be true... Can a wrasse virtually eliminate montipora eating nudi's from a tank or is it more as I suspect, keeping them at bay so their less noticed?

 

[YankeeTankee]

Do certain critters outcompete other critters of a similar or even different type to a large enough extent in aquaria that it is a worthwhile consideration to plan the introduction of one type, specifically to suppress or prevent the bad type from flourishing? Sorry this was hard for me to word. I.e. ghost flatworms to discourage other flatworms, or copepods to discourage red bugs, or munnid isopods to discourage cirolanids?

What, if any, are the most noteworthy examples of critters you should introduce to prevent worse critters from thriving, please list any you can think of regardless if they are related or not! Even fish I suppose!

And maybe @Lasse can help with some lesser known ones too! ;Shamefullyembarrased

 

[cristata.reef]

Wow I have not answered one of these threads for a loooonngg time now. Good to be back.

I digress, the short answer is yes. They will compete with each other and usually one will outcompete the other in most cases. However, you could also just have very bad luck and end up with two nasty pests in your tank. And there's no clear cut counter in a pest vs pest world. Species don't adhere to rigid ecological niches but tend to be rather adaptable to their environment as dictated by their "will" to survive. In the wild, corals often host multiple commensals like polychaetes, barnacles, bivalves, Paguritta sp. crabs, burrowing alpheid shrimps, etc. All of these burrow their way into the coral's skeleton and will essentially draw up boundaries between another, occasionally clashing if they encroach on each other's territories but never going out of their way to dominate a neighboring species. Pests are the same way, they're there to predate on a coral and that's about it. One may outcompete the other, they might coexist, or in rare cases both die off. However, I don't think there's any reliable way to guarantee that one pest can effectively fight off another through interspecific competition.

Alright, hope that helps. Just my 2 cents on the topic. If anyone else can think of something I missed, feel free to point it out.

 

[cristata.reef]

Also not sure why I specifically approached this from a pest standpoint. In terms of biological control, yes certain species will prey on others (i.e. wrasse will prey on a slew of inverts) but won't always eradicate the population of pests

 

[LadyTang2]

Wow I have not answered one of these threads for a loooonngg time now. Good to be back.

I digress, the short answer is yes. They will compete with each other and usually one will outcompete the other in most cases. However, you could also just have very bad luck and end up with two nasty pests in your tank. And there's no clear cut counter in a pest vs pest world. Species don't adhere to rigid ecological niches but tend to be rather adaptable to their environment as dictated by their "will" to survive. In the wild, corals often host multiple commensals like polychaetes, barnacles, bivalves, Paguritta sp. crabs, burrowing alpheid shrimps, etc. All of these burrow their way into the coral's skeleton and will essentially draw up boundaries between another, occasionally clashing if they encroach on each other's territories but never going out of their way to dominate a neighboring species. Pests are the same way, they're there to predate on a coral and that's about it. One may outcompete the other, they might coexist, or in rare cases both die off. However, I don't think there's any reliable way to guarantee that one pest can effectively fight off another through interspecific competition.

Alright, hope that helps. Just my 2 cents on the topic. If anyone else can think of something I missed, feel free to point it out.

Thanks sono! Can you think of any specific critters that might be good at keeping pests, of any kind, at bay, even if only theoretical? I had ttoally made up... "I.e. ghost flatworms to discourage other flatworms, or copepods to discourage red bugs, or munnid isopods to discourage cirolanids?"

 

[cristata.reef]

Thanks sono! Can you think of any specific critters that might be good at keeping pests, of any kind, at bay, even if only theoretical? I had ttoally made up... "I.e. ghost flatworms to discourage other flatworms, or copepods to discourage red bugs, or munnid isopods to discourage cirolanids?"

Most wrasses are pretty active predators when it comes to some of the problematic inverts. I've heard of people keeping network pipefish (Corythoichthys sp.) to help mitigate the spread of acro-eating red bugs and other pod-like crustaceans (although I cannot confirm the effectiveness of this). Cleaner gobies of the Elacatinus genus are supposedly said to help with ectoparasites on fish. Berghia nudibranchs and some species of peppermint shrimps (Lysmata wurdermanni species complex) prey on Aiptasia and several other similar pest anemones. However take it all with a grain of salt, each individual animal is different, and unless they are an obligate feeder, are subject to their own preferences for prey items.

 

[eschaton]

I honestly think introducing predators to deal with pests in a tank is an extreme solution which should not be done in most cases.

Most such predators basically come in two groups.

On one hand, there's the dedicated predators of a single thing, like harlequin shrimps and the nudibranchs that eat aiptasia or red planaria. They can put a dent in the pest population, but eventually need to be rehomed lest they starve to death, and sometimes don't get every one. Harlequin shrimp have a good reputation for being able to "get every one" but this is less true with the nudis.

On the other hand, things like sixlines, arrow crabs, bumblebee snails, and the like are really generalist predators of things that crawl on your rocks and sand. They will generally not bother your coral, but they will decimate lots of other small lifeforms besides your intended target. The result is your tank ecosystem will be kinda denuded of life in certain ecological niches, which opens your tank up to being colonized by the pest organisms they don't munch on.