They should all die...die, I say...

kc

kc

New Member
Okay. Everybody deals with them sooner or later. My office aquarium (7 gal eclipse) is becoming infested with aptaisia anemones. My coworkers think they are beautiful and so interesting. Ha. My live rock is very alive and I like it that way! I'm interested in some suggestions on how to destroy these pests!
Oh yeah, did I mention that I also have pet mantis shrimp? Yep. Frou-frou and Satan. Sweet little peppermint shrimp usually don't make it through the night!
Any advice will be greatly appreciated!
P.S. Some guy had an e-bay ad for Aptaisia Anemonies... the bid was at $10.00 dollars! Suckers...
 
ichthyologist

ichthyologist

New Member
I am one of the idiots that bid on them! Ok, so I am new at keeping saltwater tanks... Used to keeping FW, a heck of a lot different then SW!
Luckily, I retracted my bid!
Dave :)
[ July 28, 2001: Message edited by: Ichthyologist ]
 
kappadoku

kappadoku

Member
I keep one... One that is. Its too big for my peppermint shrimp to eat, and I just cant bring myself to euthanize it. Its about 4 inches tall fully extended, with a head/disk of anout 2 inches. He just recently, like while I was away for 2 weeks, developed nematocysts so he can feed just the other anemones. So, its not bad to keep a large one, its just like all my other anemones, and the peppermints must keep it from spreading, because I dont see any others.
[ July 28, 2001: Message edited by: KappaDoku ]
 
scy

scy

Member
Hello,As a last resort....you can buy a product called (Stop Aiptasia)you will also need a syringe,i have used this stuff before and it worked.
 
kc

kc

New Member
Please tell me more. How does it work? Where can I get it? Also this tank is at my office.
Despite my mantis shrimp, my tank is teaming with life! Damsels, crabs, urchin, polyps... you know. I assume this won't compromise the other creatures.
My aiptasia was about 2" extended. A coworker had warned me to get rid of it while there was still time. One morning I noticed it had moved over a bit. He told me the infestation was about to begin... it did!
 
scy

scy

Member
Hi KC,I bought the Aiptasia Stop from my lfs,i had them order some for me.Maybe your doctor will give you a syringe thats were i got mine,you will need a 18 gage syringe.Just let them no what you are using the syringe for.
 
kc

kc

New Member
LFS didn't have any. Didn't think to ask him to order it. Thanks for the suggestion about the syringe, too.
I'll let know if it works!
 
kc

kc

New Member
No way! They're sweet, little pets! ;) This particular tank was set up specifically for Mr. Froufrou and Satan. It's all in how you look at it... if it's in the tank, it's potentially dinner.
I keep the boys well-fed, so they basically leave the everyone else alone. They do smash the live rock to pieces though.
My concern is that Froufrou is about 2-3/4" long and may already be capable of breaking the glass. :eek: I'm still not sure how or when I'll deal with that.
 
kc

kc

New Member
No way! They're sweet, little pets! ;) This particular tank was set up specifically for Mr. Froufrou and Satan. It's all in how you look at it... if it's in the tank, it's potentially dinner.
I keep the boys well-fed, so they basically leave the everyone else alone. They do smash the live rock to pieces though.
My concern is that Froufrou is about 2-3/4" long and may already be capable of breaking the glass. :eek: I'm still not sure how or when I'll deal with that.
 
jimi

jimi

Active Member
I got rid of all mine using a kalk loaded syringe. Just mix two heaping teaspoons of kalk in a glass of water, suck the kalk into the syringe before it settles then inject it into the center of the anemone.
 
kc

kc

New Member
Hey, Jimi, that's just mean!!! :( The difference is that I want to keep my mantis shrimp. I suppose a tank with thicker glass is the answer, although someone reommended a plexiglass tank. Sounds a bit...errr...fishy to me. :rolleyes:
 
dmh

dmh

Member
I'm a little confused here. You say this is a glass tank, and are worried about the rockwork being moved and breaking the tank. Glass is pretty stout, and it would take a pretty good sized chunk of rock moving quite a bit to break even 1/8" glass, and I can't imagine the glass being thinner than that. As long as anything big is on the bottom of the tank (not on the substrate - on the bottom), I think you'd be safe. Moving your rock is alot easier then moving everything to a new tank.
 
kc

kc

New Member
:eek: Sorry, Jimi! :eek: My reply was intended for krzzydart about my m. shrimp. I fully intend to get rid of those evil anemones! Thanks very much for that advice! I've already gotten a couple of syringes. Think i'll try the kalk before ordering from my LFS. I'll certainly let y'all know how it goes THIS weekend!
I've read that a 3-4" mantis shrimp can break glass! They will see something thru it and attack it. There is a cracking/tapping sound when it strikes the glass. As I mentioned they really only smash the rocks, but who knows... Any comments?
 
dmh

dmh

Member
Im curious myself. I find it pretty hard to believe that they could break the glass themselves, but I've been wrong before. (really) I would think that tank is made out of at least 1/8" and maybe 3/16" glass. It would take a heck of alot of force to break it. Most tanks (larger ones) are made of 1/4" glass, and I'd have to see a shrimp break that to beleive it. I don't think a full-grown lobster in a hormone rage could crack that.
Just my opinion now, but if there was a way around getting a acrylic/plexiglass tank, I'd avoid it. They will scratch much easier than glass and you have to be much more careful cleaning them.
 
kc

kc

New Member
I used chopsticks to hold frozen food in front of Froufrou's favorite exit. He slowly moved out then ATTACKED it! The "clacking" sound was LOUD!!! I checked the chopsticks but there were no marks.
They can break glass. Check out this: http://www.blueboard.com/mantis/sighting/report1.htm Interesting quote from Divers Gallery: “Did you know that Stomatopod strikes are the fastest known movements in the animal kingdom? “ Pic: http://www.users.qwest.net/~bombay/t..._mantis_4.html . Mine are this species but darker with more turquoise.
 
dmh

dmh

Member
That's impressive. Coming from the Mirror (the UK Enquirer) I still wonder if there wasn't some flaw in that glass or other contributing circumstances. :) The link says that a mantis can strike with the force of a rifle bullet. Considering that a 200 grain rifle bullet (roughly the weight of the shrimp) obtains speeds in excess of 3000 feet per second and has an impact energy of nearly 4000 footpounds (even at 100 yards), a shrimp with that energy would have to move at a speed of over two-thousand miles an hour. I think that would make them a dangerous pet. :)
If the shrimp was to strike the glass with that force, it would make a clean hole through the glass, enter your chest, exit your back, blow cleanly through the wall of your house, and hopefully lodge in a tree or something before it killed anyone else. That of course assumes the shrimp itself was dense enough to survive. In reality it would probably be a splat on the inside of the aquarium.
Maybe it can break glass, but the force of a rifle bullet? Nah...
 
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