I looked through the FAQ but couldn't find this: squiggly pink stuff like silly string that looks rigid but when poked lightly seems to give a little. It started growing in my 20 gal. reef a few days after I upgraded my lighting and started adding Coral-Vital in an effort to cultivate some corraline. A little bunch will pop up and then disappear after a few days. I've tried to attach a pic but I'm not sure it worked). Any ideas? Thanks!
Squiggly Pink Stuff
- Thread starter DeederMc
- Start date
John_Brandt
Experienced Reefer
Looks like nudibranch or flatworm eggs.
John_Brandt
Experienced Reefer
Well it would be good to know if these are the eggs of a parasitic species. Do you have any soft corals or colonial anemones that appear stressed or eroding? You could try inspecting the tank with a flashlight in the middle of the night - as these animals are usually nocturnal.
Yes - I have a lovely 3" button coral that seems to be thriving. However, the Xenia colony that was doing so well a few weeks ago has shriveled to almost nothing. This began after I brought home a number of corals at one time (I'm still in the "learning the lesson the very hard way" stage) - none of which survived (too much too fast, I'm sure). I regularly look in the aquarium and the refugium with a flashlight but have never seen anything out of the ordinary until this (other than some pretty red leafy algae and small green bushy algae, both new in the last two weeks).
John_Brandt
Experienced Reefer
The nudibranch(s) may have eaten your Xenia colony. They can be voracious predators on soft corals. You might want to make close inspections around where the colony was. Look for a nudibranch that might look very much like the Xenia it was eating. If you can easily lift the rock that the Xenia was colonized upon you will often find the guy lurking just underneath.
Are the eggs in the vicinity of the Xenia?
Are the eggs in the vicinity of the Xenia?
No suspicious creatures I can locate - but there seem to be an exceptional number of bristleworms - of all sizes. I know there's one really big guy in the sandbed, and tonight I'm noticing about a dozen or so little ones in the rock. One is lurking right in the crevice with the Xenia. Could this be the answer?
John_Brandt
Experienced Reefer
The worms may have been troublemakers. Or, the bristleworms may not have caused the demise of the Xenia but they may be attracted to its decomposing remains.
Those eggs are not from a bristleworm. They may also be eggs from a snail, and sometimes those are predatory.
Those eggs are not from a bristleworm. They may also be eggs from a snail, and sometimes those are predatory.
John_Brandt
Experienced Reefer
My pleasure.
Welcome to Reefs.org!
Welcome to Reefs.org!
Hi John,
Don't know if you'll see this here but something interesting has happened by sheer luck: I've been experimenting with different ways of cultivating macro algae so I had a little bunch in one of those see-through breeder's boxes and it's been floating on the top of the tank for a few days. I put in a snail to keep the green slime off the walls. Today when I went in - pink squiggly stuff on the wall of the container! Could I ask for a better experiment? It will be interesting to see what happens over the next few days. I'lll post again when/if there are new developments.
Don't know if you'll see this here but something interesting has happened by sheer luck: I've been experimenting with different ways of cultivating macro algae so I had a little bunch in one of those see-through breeder's boxes and it's been floating on the top of the tank for a few days. I put in a snail to keep the green slime off the walls. Today when I went in - pink squiggly stuff on the wall of the container! Could I ask for a better experiment? It will be interesting to see what happens over the next few days. I'lll post again when/if there are new developments.
Attachments
This squiggly stuff doesn't look pink to me, but on the other hand, I need new glasses--badly.
This particular squiggly stuff looks like snail eggs. I caught one of my snails in the act of laying eggs on my glass, and it looks like your 'pink-stuff-2.jpg' picture. (No, I didn't take a picture of the snail laying eggs, as I was afraid that the Attorney General might be offended).
This particular squiggly stuff looks like snail eggs. I caught one of my snails in the act of laying eggs on my glass, and it looks like your 'pink-stuff-2.jpg' picture. (No, I didn't take a picture of the snail laying eggs, as I was afraid that the Attorney General might be offended).
A
Anonymous
Guest
coral vital will do just as good for your coralline after placing it in the garbage can as it will in your tank :wink:
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