Red mushroom killing my monti cap?

[bigevill1]

I have a red monti cap that has been growing great for two years in my tank and all the sudden it started dying off in a straight line on one section. The only thing near it was a large red mushroom. I removed the mushroom today, but I am not sure that could be whats doing it. My other fear is that I may have introduced nudis with a few peices of new live rock I put in a few weeks ago, but would nudis be on LR with no Montis that had been curing in the store tank for weeks? the only other change in the tank was the addition of two Hydor #4s for more flow. Nothing is blowing straight on it though. Thanks for the help.

[reefman13]

I think the possibility of nudis is MUCH more likely than the mushroom story, especially if it is in a straight line. I think it is time to quarantine and treat your whole system...

[MechEng99]

The straight line scares me into thinking Monti Nudi's. However, I have had some Monti's burnt pretty badly by mushrooms (Monti's seem to be wimps for me.)

Unless there's something out there that I'm not aware of, you can't treat your whole system for the nudi's. The only proven treatment I'm aware of that will kill the adults and eggs is potassium permanganate (sp?)...and I don't think you want that in your main tank.

Try looking underneath the cap to see if you can see them. Usually if there is a destruction line, you'll see a good many of them. If you can't see them, break off what has been destroyed so far and look then.

Yes, eggs could've been on the live rock, but it's pretty unlikely. Nudi's can survive probably longer than two months without a food source.

Maybe some Nudi experts will chime in.

Just watch that destruction line and see if it continues.

Good luck!

[bigevill1]

well the thing that made me think it wasnt nudis was that it was a huge swath of bare skeleton that appeared over night and then didnt expand for a few days. If it is nudis they will only eat my montis right? If that is the case I will remove the unaffected monits and wait it out.

[MechEng99]

Yes, they will only eat Monti's. You might have to wait about two months to make sure all eggs hatch and all the adults die in your main display. I would wait to find definite signs of them before taking drastic measures. They're not hard to find...just look closely.

[bigevill1]

well I pulled the whole colony out of the water and looked and didnt see anything, but I am not sure exactly what I am looking for either. I have heard them described, but never seen one in person. I will do a flash light check after lights out the next couple of nights as well.

[MechEng99]

There's about a billion threads with great pictures on here. Just scroll back a few pages. I think Melev has some great shots. I have a few posted back in early January, but my photography skills are lacking.

They're about 2-4mm long, white, and kinda long-haired looking. Regardless, if you see anything moving that is white on your monti, it's probably one. (Unless it's a snail, but I think you can recognize one of those...lol.)

[bigevill1]

Thanks for all of your help.