I wasn't sure what section to post this in. My 12g is having more issues than just pH *sigh*. I think I am loosing the bristleworm battle. Chain of events in the last 2 weeks:
- last week I found a hald-eaten nem, and an injured corallimorph, both near the substrate. This was while my CBS had its large arms missing. Both were quite small, but I am pretty certain this was not CBS work as it does not go into the area where this happened.
- my mushroom looks like it got a few small bites taken out of it on the side closest to the substrate. This occured sometime this week but I didn't think much of it since the mushroom is fine otherwise. I wondered if it had gotten injured by my conch landing on it or something, but after today I dont' believe the conch is responsible.
- my tongue coral was attacked today in a short timeframe. I saw some spots of damage on the top near the sides, and was about to bag up the CBS and march it back to the store...except that when I picked the coral up there was a lot more damage on the underside where I know the CBS won't have been able to get at. The damage is fresh and looks like a bunch of little bite-marks that are all the same size and shape. The marks on the top are the same: 2-3mm in diameter and fairly perfectly oval. Same size as the snicks out of the mushroom.
Based on also having seen the tail end of a rather large worm nip into cranneys in the rock and substrate when the lighting is dim (last 2-3 days), I am guessing I have the mother of all bristleworms that just decided to get hungry...which really sucks because I was sure I had the problem nailed
I was not putting the other observations together until I saw the tongue coral today. I do not want to rip apart my tank if I can avoid it. I am currently acclimating the coral extreemly slowly with a dripline to my 5g since I know for certain I have nothing mean or nasty in that tank.
First question: is it worth trying the cut & inverted soda bottle trick with bait with something that is probably in the 12"+ size range? This did not work before...but I am out of ideas. Is there some better trap?
Second question: what makes good bait? My prawn meat bait doesn't work anymore, since the remaining worms are the ones that "got away" when I very nearly had them caught using that bait. They didn't fall for it a second time. All the big worms ignore prawn now unless it winds up floating under the rocks.
Other tank info:
- sg 1.025
- temperature 78F
- 0 ammonia/nitrite/nitrate
- pH ~8.4 (mentioned in my pH/macro post as it has been rising)
- kH ~12
- 8 or so wpg lighting
Stock:
- "cripled" young engineer goby that is around 3-4"
- tongue coral until this evening, now being moved
- 1 mushroom
- white ball corallimorphs and Aiptaiidae nems
- young Strombus conches
- one adult Strombus conch
- starfish...not sure what kind, they just showed up this month.
- 1 hermit crab that has done no wrong thus far
- small CBS to control the bristleworms...which worked until it lost its big arms 2 weeks ago (hmmm...)
- the bristleworms from hell
- last week I found a hald-eaten nem, and an injured corallimorph, both near the substrate. This was while my CBS had its large arms missing. Both were quite small, but I am pretty certain this was not CBS work as it does not go into the area where this happened.
- my mushroom looks like it got a few small bites taken out of it on the side closest to the substrate. This occured sometime this week but I didn't think much of it since the mushroom is fine otherwise. I wondered if it had gotten injured by my conch landing on it or something, but after today I dont' believe the conch is responsible.
- my tongue coral was attacked today in a short timeframe. I saw some spots of damage on the top near the sides, and was about to bag up the CBS and march it back to the store...except that when I picked the coral up there was a lot more damage on the underside where I know the CBS won't have been able to get at. The damage is fresh and looks like a bunch of little bite-marks that are all the same size and shape. The marks on the top are the same: 2-3mm in diameter and fairly perfectly oval. Same size as the snicks out of the mushroom.
Based on also having seen the tail end of a rather large worm nip into cranneys in the rock and substrate when the lighting is dim (last 2-3 days), I am guessing I have the mother of all bristleworms that just decided to get hungry...which really sucks because I was sure I had the problem nailed
I was not putting the other observations together until I saw the tongue coral today. I do not want to rip apart my tank if I can avoid it. I am currently acclimating the coral extreemly slowly with a dripline to my 5g since I know for certain I have nothing mean or nasty in that tank. First question: is it worth trying the cut & inverted soda bottle trick with bait with something that is probably in the 12"+ size range? This did not work before...but I am out of ideas. Is there some better trap?
Second question: what makes good bait? My prawn meat bait doesn't work anymore, since the remaining worms are the ones that "got away" when I very nearly had them caught using that bait. They didn't fall for it a second time. All the big worms ignore prawn now unless it winds up floating under the rocks.
Other tank info:
- sg 1.025
- temperature 78F
- 0 ammonia/nitrite/nitrate
- pH ~8.4 (mentioned in my pH/macro post as it has been rising)
- kH ~12
- 8 or so wpg lighting
Stock:
- "cripled" young engineer goby that is around 3-4"
- tongue coral until this evening, now being moved
- 1 mushroom
- white ball corallimorphs and Aiptaiidae nems
- young Strombus conches
- one adult Strombus conch
- starfish...not sure what kind, they just showed up this month.
- 1 hermit crab that has done no wrong thus far
- small CBS to control the bristleworms...which worked until it lost its big arms 2 weeks ago (hmmm...)
- the bristleworms from hell
I seem to do smaller better.
