Pests are the best part of this hobby

[BelieveInBlue]

I think there's a difference between annoying pests like bristleworms and asterina stars, and dangerous pests like zoa eating nudis, AEFW, and ich.

I have colonista snails, asterina stars, pineapple sponges, vermetid snails, and who knows what else. They aren't bad in small, controlled numbers, but I wouldn't want them to take over the tank. However, most of them are pretty easy to manage population wise so it's fine, because I'm in control and I can decide how many of each I want.

On the other hand, pests like coral eaters and many fish parasites are without a doubt detrimental to the reef, and need to be purged with extreme prejudice. I will say that some pests, like flatworms and nudis can be pretty easily dealt with just by having the right predators, but I'd still prefer not having them ever; the wrasses are just there for insurance.

I'm not a fan of bristleworms personally, but I'm not going to lose sleep if a couple pop up in my tank eventually. However, if I see a frag with aiptasia on it you bet I'm ripping that thing off and plunking the frag in quarantine. And if there's no way to remove the aiptasia because it's buried in a rock, then it's going in the trash.

 

[davidcalgary29]

The dratted filefish moved on to a lovely acan colony; I noticed that it had a few good chunks taken out of it this morning. Moved the colony into my Evo and moved a nice, big cabbage coral in with the filefish. Bon appetit!

I tried to shoo the filefish toward a nice big patch of aiptasia and Kenya Tree seedlings. It just stared at be blankly and went back to hovering around the now acanless bare rock, wondering where its lunch went.

MEANWHILE, my sexy shrimp (moved after my jar exploded) started to munch on my stylophora in my Evo. Rescued the stylophora and put it in with the filefish. The sexy shrimp are now battling it out with the porcelain crab for territorial domination of the Duncans. Bigger sigh.

 

[stacksoner]

Anyone who thinks that there is some thrill or excitement from dealing with AEFW/monti nudis/zoa nudis/zoa spiders/etc I would argue either has a few screws loose or has never dealt with them in an established well populated system.

The irony here is that there are no corals or fish in the tank and OP is giving a lecture about how pests help make it more lively.

 

[Llyod276]

I think there's a difference between annoying pests like bristleworms and asterina stars, and dangerous pests like zoa eating nudis, AEFW, and ich.

I have colonista snails, asterina stars, pineapple sponges, vermetid snails, and who knows what else. They aren't bad in small, controlled numbers, but I wouldn't want them to take over the tank. However, most of them are pretty easy to manage population wise so it's fine, because I'm in control and I can decide how many of each I want.

On the other hand, pests like coral eaters and many fish parasites are without a doubt detrimental to the reef, and need to be purged with extreme prejudice. I will say that some pests, like flatworms and nudis can be pretty easily dealt with just by having the right predators, but I'd still prefer not having them ever; the wrasses are just there for insurance.

I'm not a fan of bristleworms personally, but I'm not going to lose sleep if a couple pop up in my tank eventually. However, if I see a frag with aiptasia on it you bet I'm ripping that thing off and plunking the frag in quarantine. And if there's no way to remove the aiptasia because it's buried in a rock, then it's going in the trash.

So you're telling me that if your $280 acan frag is going in the trash if theres aptaisa on it? Please PM me and I'll give you my address and you can mail it to me!!! This is ridiculous, wasn't one of the questions of the week favorite apatasia eaters? A filefish will eat it, peppermint shrimp, foxface etc. The nudi and flatworms, spiders, are harder cause they're smaller. But every pest becomes somethings lunch. And bristle worms a favorite food of most wrasses. And once you get one, you got it for life, because the one you see came from another you didn't.

 

[BelieveInBlue]

So you're telling me that if your $280 acan frag is going in the trash if theres aptaisa on it? Please PM me and I'll give you my address and you can mail it to me!!! This is ridiculous, wasn't one of the questions of the week favorite apatasia eaters? A filefish will eat it, peppermint shrimp, foxface etc. The nudi and flatworms, spiders, are harder cause they're smaller. But every pest becomes somethings lunch. And bristle worms a favorite food of most wrasses. And once you get one, you got it for life, because the one you see came from another you didn't.

If I had the money for a $280 acan frag then chances are I'll have a 300g+ tank with 10k+ in corals, and I'd probably have a quarantine set up for any livestock I purchase. In that case, yes if I absolutely can't get the aiptasia out during quarantine I'll be binning it plus whatever it came on. But more than likely I'd be able to cut the rock with a band saw and separate the aiptasia piece from the coral piece

None of the known aiptasia eaters are guaranteed to eat it except berghia nudibranchs, and those won't do anything if you have any wrasses in the tank. Filefish are well known for eating corals; peppermint shrimp are often misslabeled, and the wrongly labeled ones sometimes eat coral; copperbands are notoriously difficult to keep and often don't do well in high flow tanks; I've never heard of foxfaces eating aiptasia.

 

[mdb_talon]

So you're telling me that if your $280 acan frag is going in the trash if theres aptaisa on it? Please PM me and I'll give you my address and you can mail it to me!!! This is ridiculous, wasn't one of the questions of the week favorite apatasia eaters? A filefish will eat it, peppermint shrimp, foxface etc. The nudi and flatworms, spiders, are harder cause they're smaller. But every pest becomes somethings lunch. And bristle worms a favorite food of most wrasses. And once you get one, you got it for life, because the one you see came from another you didn't.

I did not see anyone suggesting they would throw away $300 in coral because of aiptasia....just someone who is suggesting they would eliminate it, qt it, or even discard some ROCK if they cant get it.

The eradication is not nearly so easy as people often make it sound like. Filefish usually eat it....but often nip or eat polyps as well. Peppermint shrimp are hit or miss and depending on setup not appropriate. The only 100% safe way is bergia, but depending on other livestock they often just end up an expensive lunch before they do anything.

It is similar with other pests....most have a predator, but not always one appropriate for every tank. Something like aefw is ignored by many wrasses for example, but can be kept in check by some(though rarely eliminated)

 

[Llyod276]

Maybe your right mdb, I dint have those fancy corals, so I dont know for sure. But I do know that I had aptasia once and prolly will again cause I've yet to go to any of my lfs's and not see aptaisa somewhere. My aptaisa disappeared, yes I have a filefish and no he never at any of my polyps, although I can attest to my CB's taste for hammers.

Maybe my aptasia disappeared through neglect, cause I wasn't doing water changes and barely running the (undersized) skimmer plus messing with settings on my lights, when I got a new fancy one. I dont do any of these neglectful things anymore cause yeah, I wouldn't want to live in filth.

But man if yall throwing away acans, let me know I'll take em!!!

 

[mdb_talon]

Maybe your right mdb, I dint have those fancy corals, so I dont know for sure. But I do know that I had aptasia once and prolly will again cause I've yet to go to any of my lfs's and not see aptaisa somewhere. My aptaisa disappeared, yes I have a filefish and no he never at any of my polyps, although I can attest to my CB's taste for hammers.

Maybe my aptasia disappeared through neglect, cause I wasn't doing water changes and barely running the (undersized) skimmer plus messing with settings on my lights, when I got a new fancy one. I dont do any of these neglectful things anymore cause yeah, I wouldn't want to live in filth.

But man if yall throwing away acans, let me know I'll take em!!!

Lol the only acans i have thrown away had BJD

 

[Grumblez]

Some yall mad. It's a click bait title obviously, and if you watch it the only thing she really is some people are so hard-core with quarantine they use a microscope and change plugs twice etc.

With that said I don't quarantine corals primarily for coral pests, the primary reason is the small chance it has a little ich egg on it. Which she doesn't mention That's the where the 70 day number comes from. Thats how long it can take the egg / cyst to hatch and not find a fish host and die

 

[Quietman]

Pests... they're not a bug... they're a feature.

I have for the last several months thought about an old school tank. Live rock from the ocean and come what may. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs if war. Dogs being aptasia, bristle anything and carnivorous amphipods.

Many of those tanks looked great... something to be said for a non-sterile reef tank. My sterile hasn't been exactly a rousing success.

 

[Llyod276]

Setting up my new 1052g tank for my pest(s).

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

So u just record urself talk and ppl watch? U need.coral ms. And fish. And cuc. Lol.
Nice.set up.
D

 

[MaxTremors]

This is just an attention-grabbing post by a wanna be reefer who has never experienced marine velvet or other tank-ending disease.

This is nonsense. There is no such thing. If you have a reef tank, you’re a reefer. There’s no one right way to reef, QTing or not QTing isn’t what makes a reefer, nor is it your outlook or approach to pests or hitchhikers. This kind of elitism/gatekeeping/one-size-fits-all thinking is cancerous.

 

[revhtree]

Some of y’all need to please take a step back and possibly quit posting in this thread. Rude or flaming posts will be removed. Thanks.