Nudibranch care and feeding

[fish sense]

I was wondering if all a nudibranch needs is algae to graze on to keep healthy, also any paricular type of algae? Also, anything else they need? What to look out for aside for toxins if they are attacked. Any colors ore species to avoid. Thanks!

 

[fender]

Unfortunately their are hundreds of different types of nudibranches and each and everyone has a unique diet. What this means is it is VERY hard to care for one unless you have one that eats the kind of algae that is growing in your tank. I have a sea hare which is the same family and it appears to munch on the algae growing on my LR. I have no idea what exacly the type he is.
He is also ugly as it gets.
Most are don't live very long because they will only eat just one thing and only that thing. Could be caulerpa, hair algae, red sponges, aiptasias, anything, but that is all they will eat.

 

[vermillion]

You don't have to worry about what they eat cause they probably won't last very long in your tank. They will either die of starvation or get sucked up by a pump it's just a matter of time for either.

 

[landmeier]

Actually you do have to worry about what they eat that is why they die. They die because they are not being supplied with what they need in their natural environment. The reason we keep fish and other sea life is to make them happy as well as ourselves. Vermillion's comment angers me. If you can't care for it don't buy it!

 

[reefkeeper1]

The only ones you have to worry about poisoning your tank are the ones in the phyllidia family, they have many names when sold but are commonly refered to as the scrambled egg nudibranch a definate no no in aquariums. If it dies in you tank not only will it kill everything but it will posion the tank its self killing every thing you put in it after its death. The only way to stop this is to break down the tank and clean it with bleach. As for other nudibranches (greek goddes spanish dancer and ect) They do not eat alge and are not a part of a clean up crew as sold by some stores. They actually eat sponges and not any sponge but one particular sponge. the only way to keep them alive in a tank is if you dive every day to replenish there food. Sponges taht are eaten off do not get a chance to heal and die with in a day or two and need to beremoved from the tank so they dont fowl up water. The food source of Some of the nudibranches mentioned above is not even known. There are nudibranches that eat alge and they are in the elysia family sold as lettuce nudibranches They eat green hair alge and consume a very large amounts they also have zooxanthellae and require light to help them process there food. You can see many spots on the frills theys are like solar panels that they use to collect the light. Berghia verrucicornis eats apitasia anenome and would be the easiest to keep you would have to start growing apitasia before you got it or it will starve. There is another species that eats molucs and would be easy to keep also i do not have any info on it right now if you are interested i can look threw some papers for it.

 

[vermillion]

Landmeier, does Old Yeller Tang anger you also, he should he said the same thing I did. But Fish Sense if you want to throw away your money like I did go right ahead. I tried twice so just wanted to save you a little trouble. They get sucked into power heads of all kinds and if not that they will go down the overflow sooner or later.

 

[fish sense]

Thanks for all the input!!!