Aiptasia diaphana (sea anemone)

Source: aquaduo.nl

QUICK STATS

• Care Level: Easy
  
• Reef Compatible: No, will overgrow
  
• Max. Size: 2 cm

Why the Glas Anemon is a plague, well, that's because they multiply very fast and sting very bad. You can inject boiling water in them. Use a needle and try to inject it in the "head" or "neck".
There are some fish and shrimps who have the glas anemon on their menu: Acreichthys tomentosus, Chelmon marginalis, Lysmata wurdimanni

Other links:
http://www.reeflex.net/tiere/961_Aiptasia_diaphana.htm

First pictures, 2 of them showing very well on the new coral

One of the heads has been injected with vinegar, he didn't show after we injected him so I guess we got him. One big one still there and allot small ones I think.

Still 2 visible, we did notice we now have 2 live peppermint shrimps. Hopefully they will finish the 2 big ones off

Only one more left, but it's a big one. Last time cleaning we threw some sand on it, but it made it's way back up. Maybe this weekend we will try again to kill it.

Still not dead, and we noticed a smaller one appearing now as well. Hopefully the peppermint shrimps will take care of that one (if they are alive...haven't seen them in a while) but the big one needs some manual attention.

Yesterday we put a needle filled with boiling water in the big anemone, as expected he tried to get away but we think we got him. This morning there was still no trace of him. Now hopefully the shrimps deal with the small anemone.

Unfortunatly the big anemone got back, so we decided to take out the whole rock and inject some boiling water over the whole rock. It now seems to have really died, no trace of the big anemone, or the small ones. Hopefully end of this week i can close the topic.

Still no sign of any sea anemones, so I officially declare this topic closed!

And then you see two new ones again. Have to try to kill them again.

Tried injecting them with boiling water, unfortunately the one near the corals is back already. The other one hasnt been seen yet, hope I got him.

Both the sea anemones spotted earlier have been killed now. Unfortunately now new ones appeared on the rock where the toadstool mushroom is located, so back where we started. But we will take care of those next week when taking everything out.
But this one is now closed and considered dead!

Both the sea anemones spotted earlier have been killed now. Unfortunately now new ones appeared on the rock where the toadstool mushroom is located, so back where we started. But we will take care of those next week when taking everything out.
So now we keep track of this one.

The new sea anemones are not welcome in the new environment. The rock will get a good treatment before putting it back in the aquarium. So I hope this is the last picture ever seen of the sea anemones.

Currently there are 4 spotted, so it's going to be more work to remove them all now. I will try to make some pictures before we kill them

Each rock is undergoing treatment. We already killed 3 out of 4, only one more rock left with a Sea Anemone on it. But my girlfriend will try and kill him today. All are injected with boiling water.

Think we got them all, maybe to be sure we going to buy some creature to eat them...but for now this topic is closed!

Yesterday when we looked at the aquarium we found a new Sea Anemone on one of the new rocks
It's a pretty big one already...and it needs to go...

Not seen again since my clean up action last week

I merged all the topics on the sea anemone, didn't seem to make much sense to write about each anemone I see.

They are back again…sea anemones. I spotted one Tuesday evening, and found about 3/4 others wednesday. All of them are located on the rock with mushrooms so it’s going to be hard to treat it.

Yesterday we treated the rock for the Sea Anemones and I haven’t seen them so far. However, since they seem to reappear each time I decided to do some research on how to prevent them from showing up. So far I found the following information.

There are several animals that have sea anemones on their menu and experiences differ with each one. My only experience so far where the Lysmata wurdemanni (Peppermint Shrimp), but they didn’t last very long in my aquarium for a yet unknown reason.

Here is a list of animals that could help according to some sites, more details later.

Fish
1. Chelmon rostratus
2. Chaetodon kleini
3. Chaetodon lunula
4. Chaetodon striatus
5. Chaetodon xanthurus
6. Platax orbicularis
7. Acreichthys tomentosus

Invertebrates
1. Rhynchocinetes uritai
2. Lysmata wurdemanni
3. Berghia verrucicornis/Aeolidiella stephanieae

Chelmon rostratus (Copperband Butterflyfish)

This fish is hard to keep and could pick on invertebrates and corals. But is claimed to be an excellent weapon against Aiptasia


Chetodon kleini (Orange Butterflyfish)

Better to take care of then the Copperband Butterflyfish, also smaller. But some don’t mention him as being a weapon against Aiptasia.


Chaetodon lunula (Raccoon Butterflyfish)

Also good to take care of, but rather big family member. A big aquarium is needed for this fish and it’s deemed to eat invertebrates and corals. Advice to keep it in a fish only aquarium. No special mention on Aiptasia, but I guess it will do the trick, since it will eat Anemones in general.


Chaetodon striatus (Banded butterflyfish)

A smaller family member again, this one is moderate to take care. Like other butterfly fish they sometimes take a pick at corals, fan worms and other anemones. But they are used to defeat an Aiptasia plague.


Chaetodon xanthurus (Pearlscale butterflyfish)

The last of the line of Butterfly fishes, and another very beautiful specimen. This one can grow up to 15 cm and is moderate to take care of. Like other butterfly fish it tends to pick at corals and invertebrates and is therefore not reef safe. But like his family members it can be used against Aiptasia.


Platax orbicularis (Orbiculate Batfish)

Moderate to take care of this fish can become very large (up to 55 cm). It needs a lot of open space to swim. Besides that it is also not a good reef dweller, it will eat many sessile invertebrates including corals and anemones. Nothing specific on eating Aiptasia however.


Acreichthys tomentosus (Matted Filefish)

Most seen fish in the battle against Aiptasia, this fish is even referred to sometimes as Aiptasia eating filefish. It’s a peaceful fish that is moderate to take care of, however it also nips at soft and stony corals.


Rhynchocinetes uritai (Camel Shrimp)

Easy to take care of, but does have the habit of picking on softcorals and polyps sometimes. Should be reef safe however, it’s just that rare occasion. Only few sites show them as an option against Aiptasia however.


Lysmata wurdemanni (Peppermint Shrimp)

A very easy to keep invertebrate which is known for its natural ability to manage Aiptasia. However, some are very good at it and other doesn’t even notice Aiptasia. They are scavengers by nature and they pick their way around the aquarium and live rock to consume detritus, uneaten food, and decomposing organic material. They are reef safe so unlike the fish mentioned earlier they don’t attack corals and other anemones.


Berghia verrucicornis/Aeolidiella stephanieae(new name)

Mixed results on there small animals. Some people say they work great against Aiptasia…well actually everywhere I read everyone says they work great, even though not much information can be found on them. But there was one site which scared me a bit, what do the Nudibranches do when there is no more Aiptasia to eat? http://sw.eyeunit.com/furandip.html.



Difficult choices, looks to me that the Peppermint shrimps are still the safest and best way to take care of Aiptasia in a natural way, even though they weren’t very successful in our aquarium. The Berghia nudibranches seem to be a good way also, but still very little information to be found on them and how they act. The sites I normally get my information from don’t have anything on these invertebrates. Also the idea of fighting one plague with something that could be another plague sounds a bit weird, I have seen many people say they inserted two and now have 20 or even more.
The camel shrimp and all fish types all have the same problem, they all seem to pick on corals and invertebrates as well. So they would make a great solution when you don’t have any small corals and invertebrates, but in an aquarium like the one we have it might be a problem.

No conclusion just yet, going to throw my findings around and see what kind of reply’s come to that. See what other people use and what their experiences are. Also opened a poll here on the forums for people to vote for their favourite, but more helpful would be to explain your choice, share your experiences.

Yesterday I found some Sea Anemones again, three of them sticking out of the sand. Guess we are on for another battle

Didn't bother them that we had to rebuild, only one of them moved a bit.

The aiptasia plague is becoming worse, several are showing now, and injecting them doesn’t seem to work very well. Of course we aren’t giving up that easy, but we (at least I am) considering peppermint shrimps again, and maybe try the Nudibranches that many people these days seem to praise.

I asked for an estimated price for berghia nudibranches or Sea Anemone eating nudibranches. The war goes on!