Xenia eating nudibach

[bige]

A local reefer has a nudi that appears to only eat Xenia. When it is done in her tank she said I can have it. Do you think it's too risky? Has anyone heard of a nudi that only eats Xenia? If it works that would be awesome.

 

[Craig Borowski Verified Sponsor]

Yes, they do exist. Nudibranchs are pretty neat in that they are very specialized feeders. Most types will only consume one very specific food item.

 

[bige]

My concern is I get it in my tank and all the sudden it only eats acans.

 

[Kano]

If you have a frag of acans that you can move into the person's tank you could test it out. Might not be 100% safe but as Craig said mostly Nudis only eat one item. Aiptasia, Xenia, other nudis. If you can't remove the Xenia because of how your rockwork is it sounds like your best bet.

 

[Craig Borowski Verified Sponsor]

My concern is I get it in my tank and all the sudden it only eats acans.

That would be, in my experience, very, very unlikely.

Another tip is that many nudibranchs look similar to whatever it is they eat. The Xenia-eating nudibranhcs IIRC look a lot like Xenia.

 

[bige]

That's funny you say that. It has pulsing hand like things on its back. It's less than an inch long but wiped her tank out. No Xenia in about a week. I am going to trade her a huge rock of Xenia for the nudi. The problem right now is, she can't find it. So I am going to send her a few Xenia to see if it comes out.

 

[swannyson7]

You should try to culture them. That's the type of thing that many reefers would pay for! 1smile1

 

[bige]

If they eat all the Xenia I have I image a culture would be started and thrive. I hope I get to try it.