Chitons

[Andy16]

Well, all I really need to no is if they eat coralline algae or not. So, anybody know?

 

[skippy2]

I bought a piece of rock awhile back that had 25 chitons on it. I already had found 2 before this new rock. I have not seen them eat any corraline yet. Maybe somebody else knows. I think I will be a newbie forever.

 

[mogurnda]

I think I will be a newbie forever.

You and me both.

As often happens with my brain, I can't find the article I want. What I remember is that the radulla (the scraping "tongue") of a chiton is very mineralized, so that it can scrape anything off the rocks. However, they also tend to be homebodies, sticking to one area, so they don't leave a wide swath of destruction.

 

[Andy16]

Thanks guys. Mine seem to roam all over the place. I think that Ill remove them just to be safe.

 

[mogurnda]

I just remembered something OrionGirl mentioned. Things like limpets and chitons make good herbivores for tanks with aggressive fish like triggers. You might try to find someone who wants them.

 

[benjen]

If they wander all over, they might be isopods that just look like chitons... It took me a couple looks to realize that a "chiton" was actually an isopod.

 

[reefpicker]

Hi

As I recall, chitons remind attached to the rock for a long time. It seems, as I just found today from browsing the internet, that they are nocturnal browsers, just like some echinoderms.


Anway, it should not be difficult to distinguish between amphipods and chitons because chitons do not have legs or antennae. They are just this flattened thing with a carapace... Look for pictures in the internet...

Anyway, I also found this:

Feeding is primarily nocturnal, Acanthopleura feeds eight hours a day, and Chiton six to seven hours daily. Several species of blue-green, green and red algae, and a relatively large quantity of inorganic material, are browsed from the rock substratum.

 

[Andy16]

Thanks for all of the info. I know that they came from the carribean sea if that helps at all.