Are Aiptasia Eating Berghia Nudibranchs Really Reef Safe? No Seriously Are They??

[SPS Reefer]

Hello Everyone,

So I got a small 10g frag tank that has some aiptasia in it that I am looking to destroy.:mad:

In this 10g I have my entire zoanthid collection, several acans, a few leptoseris, and my prized hammer corals (its packed).

#1) If I get Berghia Nudibranchs will they eat any of my corals?
#2) What will the nudibranchs do when all the aiptasia is gone?
#3) Will starving or dead nudibranchs nuke my tank?
#4) Will starving nudibranchs eat my corals?

Please share your thoughts and experiences with using Berghia Nudibranchs to control Aiptasia.

If anyone has any bad experiences with Berghia Nudibranchs I want to know!! I think the worst case scenario is always a good thing to keep in mind.

I know the other methods to control Aiptasia. Please tell me about the Berghia Nudibranchs only thank you.

Thank you and happy reefing!!!

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

The nudi's usually will eat all of the aiptasia they can and essentially starve to death as soon as the aiptasia get too sparse in the tank, based on what I've read about them. They also may not get all of the aiptasia, but they will put a serious dent in the population. However, in a tank like yours I would expect them to get the majority of aiptasia with as little as two or three nudi's. Once it gets down to the point where you can no longer find any aiptasia, I would take the nudi's to your LFS or to another hobbyist with aiptasia so they don't starve.

They may crawl over your corals but they shouldn't feed on them. You want to be sure that you are getting actual Berghia Nudibranchs though and not something else that someone found hanging out in their tank.

 

[SPS Reefer]

Prime time bump!

 

[BoomCorals]

1. No
2. Starve
3. Probably not though 10g isn’t much volume
4. No

 

[SPS Reefer]

1. No
2. Starve
3. Probably not though 10g isn’t much volume
4. No

Thank you very much! I think I am also going to add some blue legged hermits to eat any nudis that die off.

 

[jd371]

Thank you very much! I think I am also going to add some blue legged hermits to eat any nudis that die off.

I'd try and pass them off to a fellow reefer that could use them after they clear your tank of Aptasia. They will be easy to catch once they are starving because they'll come out during the day looking for Aptasia. Hermits will eat the nudis alive or dead so add them after you think the nudis have all died, but I would really try and give the nudis away before they starve and die.

 

[SPS Reefer]

I'd try and pass them off to a fellow reefer that could use them after they clear your tank of Aptasia. They will be easy to catch once they are starving because they'll come out during the day looking for Aptasia. Hermits will eat the nudis alive or dead so add them after you think the nudis have all died, but I would really try and give the nudis away before they starve and die.

Thank you!! That is some great information...I can try to catch them but I live in SE Michigan where there are a lot of reefers but I do not know a lot of other reefers in my community. I am usually pretty busy with med school and the family so I have not had a lot of time to get out there and find reefing buds so don't have anyone that I could pass them off to. My local LFS might take them but I doubt it since they know a lot about freshwater but their saltwater knowledge seems to be lacking in some areas from my experience.

 

[Kamden Uelton]

Most nudibranch species only eat ONE species of Hydroid, Bryzoa, Anemone, Sponge, etc so the chances of TRUE Berghia Nudibranch eating other coral is very slim. HOWEVER, Berghia Nudibranch looks just like every other Aeolid Nudibranch and if the Berghia are wild collected they could be mixed with coral/anemone eating Aeolid Nudibranch, It is best to buy them Captive-raised and not wild collected.

 

[SPS Reefer]

I was thinking of buying them from Reeftown: https://reeftown.com/berghia-nudibranchs

Has anyone bought these before from Reeftown? Good experience?

 

[SneakyTortuga]

I just received some from salty supply today. They all looked healthy and active. I’m here in south Florida. Once they start minimizing the population I will pass some on if anyone needs

 

[Proteus Meep]

Here is one of my Berghia i had going off to work, sadly it is best to just leave them in the tank until the bitter end so that you know all the aiptasia have been eradicated

 

[CC13]

To revive this thread I have a question.

I have some pretty large aiptasia to which I have in my continued efforts been unsuccessful in eradicating.

Will/can nudis eat large aiptasia?

I am hoping for a yes answer but am somewhat skeptical.

 

[marlinmon]

To revive this thread I have a question.

I have some pretty large aiptasia to which I have in my continued efforts been unsuccessful in eradicating.

Will/can nudis eat large aiptasia?

I am hoping for a yes answer but am somewhat skeptical.

Yes, I've seen videos. Look on youtube

 

[SPS Reefer]

I purchased 4 0r 5 nudis from reeftown and they eradicated all of the aiptasia. They ate all the aiptasia (micro sized to huge) within 1-2 weeks then died quickly from starvation. It was a 10 gallon frag tank with a lot of aiptasia and the dead nudis did not nuke the tank (fine sandbed, no live rock except for frag plugs). It's been about 6 months and I have not seen a resurgence of the aiptasia.

 

[GentlePuffer]

Did you remove your filter media? How did they get into the back and harder to reach parts of the tank?

 

[tehmadreefer]

Mine are in my overflows in my 180 and down in my refugium. They are very tiny and can get through small openings.

 

[LadyTang2]

If you had one or two berghia nudibranch in a large system, say a 200g tank, would they really starve to death without aptasia, thats truly the only thing they will eat? Surely someone has seen them transition foods, no?

 

[Shawn.B]

As a former breeder i and ensure you
#1) No
#2) Die
#3) No
#4) No

EDIT: just realized this post was from 2018 - glad they worked for you

 

[EQBardreefer]

Yes, I've seen videos. Look on youtube

Yes - get Berghia nudibranch from saltyunderground.com