My reef tank is over run with anemones

[Joe_K]

Help!!! I started a reef tank. 55 gal. with 60 lbs of Fiji live rock. My tank is now over run with rock anemones. I cant seem to control them. Dose anybody have any ideas on how to control this population explosion?

[BrianH]

My recommendation is to get a few peppermint shrimp for the small ones and to inject the larger ones with a strong kalk mix. You mix enough kalk and RO water until it is a white soupy mixture. Then inject this concoction into each anenome with a syringe. I wouldn't use more than a syringe full per day. The peppermint shrimp (make sure they are peppermints) should take care of the smaller anenomes.

Brian

[FISH]

If you can get one of these, it's the only thing that worked for me.
I tried everything else and found that you have to keep injecting them almost every week or so.
Good luck !!!!
I got this guy at http://themarinecenter.com , they quarantine them and make sure they are eating before they ship it out to you .

Copperband Butterfly

[hammerandy]

Is it Rock anemones or astpasia (sp). If they are rock anemones you can sell them. If Astpasia there is a Nubibranch species that will eat them. Of course as soon as the Nubibranch has eaten them they will die off. I got some at captivebredcorals.com check with them. They did the trick.
Randy

[VoodooChild]

This may be a bit of encouragement for you. I picked up some LR that had dozens of these on it (they're were in the holes...) and they bloomed for a few days, then all died off. Perhaps it was due to the unestablished tank or the change in water conditions, but they're all gone. Just some hope.

[glc]

Will any of these suggested remodies survive with a Lion Fish in the tank?

[FISH]

I don't have any experience with a lion so I don't know but you should be able to keep a copperband butterfly with it.
Good luck there.

[BrianH]

Try the kalk method before adding a copperband butterfly if you have a reef tank. Many copperband butterflys will munch on corals.

Brian

[glc]

Thaunx guys. The pepermint shrimp will get eaten by the lion fish, injecting would be a near impossibility since they are so small, come out at night and there are about 10,000 of them hidden in the rocks. The butterfly will not work because of my fear of him nibbling on my polyps and mushrooms. So that leaves the nudibranch. Will my lion leave him alone? If so what kind of nidibranch is it that I need? Will they leave other anenomes alone?

Thanx G.L.C

[FISH]

I'm sorry, I forgot to ask . Do you have soft corals only or are there sps also.
My copperband is in an sps tank which also has mushrooms. Mr Copperband does not touch the mushrooms or the sps. I also have zoanthids and he doesn't bother them either.

Good luck man , I was nuts also before I got hte copperband and now I don't even think about aiptasia except when I see thein the overflows :(

http://community.webtv.net/MarkPelski/INTHEWALL120GAL

[karlas]

i dont know if the lion would go after a nudibranch but the aptasia eating kind is called a bergia nudibranch heres some info on it. keep in mind aptasia are its only source of food it will accept

bergia nudibranch (http://www.reefs.org/library/article/Inland_Aquatics_Aiptasia_Control.html)

bergia pic (http://www.seaslugforum.net/bergverr.htm)

[OrionGirl]

How big is the lion? We kept our juvenile lion in the reef tank for about a year without any losses of crustaceans. Lions prefer food that is easy to eat, and shelled critters are not on the list.

[karlas]

another thing buy some kalkwasser and make a paste, get a syringe and start shootin them it worked on mine. they grab the paste and eat it then it melts them from the inside out