Pix & ID: Critters that come in your rocks: the good and the bad.

[DarthNater]

maybe use your net like you would the scooper for cleaning a litter box? im no expert by any means. just looks like a very convenient spot being in the sand.

[ReeferKimberly]

If it's in the sand and only in the sand, you can remove it by grabbing. I have had it happen that they didn't attach to anything but sand, but rarely. But if it's on the glass you will no doubt leave behind 'spores' (or whatever they are called) that will turn into several more. That's in an easy spot and is big enough to inject with straight vinegar, that's what I do. I happen to have needles from pet vaccinations....but if you don't have needles try aiptasia X or Joe's Juice. People say boiling water sprayed directly on it works too but I have not tried it.

And when your tank finishes cycling (if it isn't), just add a peppermint shrimp. He should eat them and keep your tank aiptasia free. Some people say they have had peps that wouldn't eat them, I never have. They are cheap and cool and great aiptasia eaters. There are other creatures, berghia nudibranch (you don't have enough aiptasia as they eat nothing else), Matted File Fish (they can eat coral if you plan to have coral and are not as reliable as a peppermint shrimp), Copperbanded Butterfly (not hardy and too big for your tank), and Klein's Butterfly (too big for your tank).

Your best bet is biological control for the long haul, and a peppermint shrimp is what you should try first.

[jwolcott]

Thanks for pictures, helps I.d. a lot of unknowns

[Mstark11]

Found something wandering around my LR. Tried to get a picture but it's teeny tiny, the two I uploaded were the best I could do. It almost looks like a very very small cleaner shrimp, that sort of yellow/orange body with a red stripe.

[SushiGirl]

Can't really tell on my phone, but I would guess amphipod.

[sick_bubblegum]

horrible photo - i know. long tentacles that are translucent, with bulbs at the tips. the thing is tiny, maybe half an inch in diameter.

photo doesn't seem to be showing up for some reason....

[ReeferKimberly]

Originally Posted by sick_bubblegum

horrible photo - i know. long tentacles that are translucent, with bulbs at the tips. the thing is tiny, maybe half an inch in diameter.

photo doesn't seem to be showing up for some reason....

sounds like an orange ball anenome. everyone seems to like them but sushi

I have some in my tank, havn't seemed to bother anything. Look them up and compare pics. Also can be called strawberry anenome

[mkalbi]

Hi all, new here; first post.
here is an interesting one... the other day i was lucky enough to shoot this little video clip of this crazy little white squiggly worm thing in my tank. my tomato clown devoured it and it kinda turned into a puff of white smoke.

any idea what that could be? this was the first and only time i saw one like this.

[SushiGirl]

Can't get it to play on my phone, but google bristleworm epitoke & see if that's it.

[mkalbi]

Thanks SushiGirl. I believe that is what it was an epitoke section from a worm. I hope it was from a bristle worm and not any nasty worms.

[Outrigger Reef]

Originally Posted by ReeferKimberly

If it's in the sand and only in the sand, you can remove it by grabbing. I have had it happen that they didn't attach to anything but sand, but rarely. But if it's on the glass you will no doubt leave behind 'spores' (or whatever they are called) that will turn into several more. That's in an easy spot and is big enough to inject with straight vinegar, that's what I do. I happen to have needles from pet vaccinations....but if you don't have needles try aiptasia X or Joe's Juice. People say boiling water sprayed directly on it works too but I have not tried it.

And when your tank finishes cycling (if it isn't), just add a peppermint shrimp. He should eat them and keep your tank aiptasia free. Some people say they have had peps that wouldn't eat them, I never have. They are cheap and cool and great aiptasia eaters. There are other creatures, berghia nudibranch (you don't have enough aiptasia as they eat nothing else), Matted File Fish (they can eat coral if you plan to have coral and are not as reliable as a peppermint shrimp), Copperbanded Butterfly (not hardy and too big for your tank), and Klein's Butterfly (too big for your tank).

Your best bet is biological control for the long haul, and a peppermint shrimp is what you should try first.

Took the peppermint shrimp 2 days to find and eat it. Thanks for the help.

[cheezischrist]

ok, this is entirely new to me in my tank, especially since i havent added anything in over 2 months(gettin ready to move and upgrading to larger system when i do). picture isnt great, from my phone and couldnt get blue out. its the red/purple sparkling gold spotted flower growing at the base on bottom right. its actually quite beautiful under the blues, when the bubbles all closed up. and its only been there a week maximum. its soft, but like a mushroom or cabbage leather. and slimes if i mess with it, but that could be the bubble being angry, though it seems to come off the thing itself. any ideas? i dont know if its a softie, or algae... and wanna prop it if i can figure out what it is. i do know it doesnt get tons of light cus the bubble is usually smothering it.

[Ptyochromis]

Some sort of hitchhiking sea slug/nudibranch. Is it a 'bad guy'?

[nanoreef heaven]

Looks like a type of flatworm to me

*Sent from my little corner of the reef. Nano nano!*

[Ptyochromis]

Ya, it is. Apparently it is a Polyclad flatworm.

Thx for pointing me the right way :P

[nanoreef heaven]

Originally Posted by cheezischrist

ok, this is entirely new to me in my tank, especially since i havent added anything in over 2 months(gettin ready to move and upgrading to larger system when i do). picture isnt great, from my phone and couldnt get blue out. its the red/purple sparkling gold spotted flower growing at the base on bottom right. its actually quite beautiful under the blues, when the bubbles all closed up. and its only been there a week maximum. its soft, but like a mushroom or cabbage leather. and slimes if i mess with it, but that could be the bubble being angry, though it seems to come off the thing itself. any ideas? i dont know if its a softie, or algae... and wanna prop it if i can figure out what it is. i do know it doesnt get tons of light cus the bubble is usually smothering it.

Looks like macro algae to me. Which one IDK.

*Sent from my little corner of the reef. Nano nano!*

[cheezischrist]

whatever it is, ater moving a few rocks and giving it more light/flow, its growing. i may attempt cutting a piece and puttin it on a plug to see exactly what it turns into lol.

[nanoreef heaven]

It looks nice. I'd sure like a piece LOL.

*Sent from my little corner of the reef. Nano nano!*

[ag09g]

Can anyone ID these things?

theres five of them clustered together on my little piece of live rock. They dont move around, but can shrink and expand, I think depending on light. they have one opening at the free end of their bodies, and are squishy and look very fleshy, theyre kind of like the texture of a sea cucumber more so than like a sponge, if that helps.
Oh, and they also didnt respond when I molested them with a stick

They also fluoresce, which is how I first found them!

I took some great pictures with my camera, but they wouldnt upload, so here are some crappy iphone pics!

[SushiGirl]

Thought I answered this last night LOL. Looks & sounds like tunicates.

[ReeferKimberly]

Originally Posted by ag09g

Oh, and they also didnt respond when I molested them with a stick

Signature worthy.

[cheezischrist]

definately signature worthy.... i may have just peed a little lol

[ag09g]

I added that line just for giggles, a job well done apparently haha

And thank you! All I could think was that they were tunicates too, they just look different than any I've seen before!

[ag09g]

So I was just on liveaquaria at 3am instead of sleeping, and I found this in the divers den!
Literally looks exactly like whats on my rock, except mine are not the same color. Super cool.

[ArrowCrab]

found this big guy growing in my sump when I was scraping algae off the tank glass
aiptasia? some other kind of nem?

[IMG]http://i49.*******.com/v48lxg.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i49.*******.com/n5scpt.jpg[/IMG]