Vermitid deforestation

[G Santana]

Over 30 years ago I started a SW tank with absolutely the bare amount knowledge (wish we had the internet then) and in the first year I had what everyone might call an infestation of vermitid I had no knowledge of how to rid myself of them so they just became part of the landscape. Within two years I couldn't find a trace of them.
Fast forward to the the Covid years I restarted the tank and careful as I was those devils sneaked in and within 6 months I had a forest of vermitid snails.
Over the last 6 months or so I noticed a steady decline and while cleaning my glass today I was hard pressed to find any. Just like 32 years ago they crashed and are gone.
Has anyone experienced this? I don't think this is a coincidence but rather as the tank matured less and less nutrients were available. Just my 2 cents.
Oh I did throw in a handful of bumblebee snails but I can't give them the credit, no way they could have eliminated all of them in the span of 6 months.
Just an observation.

 

[exnisstech]

My experience has been similar. I had a pretty bad infestation a couple of times and like you they just tend to fade away. Unfortunately the last time I had some monticaps that they caused some unwanted growth patterns on but not the end of the world I guess. Filter feeders like vermatids tend to come and go as the tank matures. My experiences with asterina stars has been similar. They appear out of no where, multiply like mad then start to thin out after a while.

 

[I never finish anythi]

Yep same for me . They came and the went !!

 

[OrchidMiss]

Yep same for me . They came and the went !!

Unrelated.
But your name makes me giggle everyt

 

[dwest]

Very jealous! Mine seem happy and keep multiplying!

 

[Miami Reef]

I think I’m having a similar experience. I don’t really notice them anymore. It almost seems like they went away. I don’t keep track of them, but I expected them to take over the tank. It seems they are less plentiful.

 

[ilikefish69]

………….yea……. Mine are just disappearing too…..

Think the phosphates in the 0.3-0.4 range probably keep them well fed. Tanks about 18 months, worst was right around the 12 month mark. Tons of bumblebees, they are keeping the level stable at best.

Y’all lucky

 

[KrisReef]

First time I had them I had the needle thin tube version and I didn't really mind them much until they got so that everytime I reached in the tank I got jabbed by a tube that snapped off under the skin. I bet the neighbors still wonder what I was raising my voice about.

Next tank was the monster sized ones that form spirals about as thick as a nickle. They seemed to really be slow growing, but steady and at some point I declared war and started chisling them off the rocks, glass, and coral heads whenever I found them in a place I could reach. Of course you can never get them all but at some point it seemed like they got the memo and started putting out smaller nets and not reproducing like rabbits?

In between those tanks I had them come and go on their own, no reason, maybe Alk swings? If only.

 

[monfilsi]

I observed the same. Bad from 4months to 14months then dying off slowly. Not too many left after 18months. I have a high power laser that I blast them with. But lately I have only had to use the laser on the odd small aptasia that pops up.

Saw similar thing with spirorbis worm in the first couples of months setting up the tank, but that outbreak disappeared very quickly when the number of fish in the tank increased.