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Aquattro
03-18-2003, 04:33 PM
Just thought I would remind everyone to quarantine ANY new addition to their tank, as well as visually inspect any corals for pests.
I have recently aquired a healthy population of red acro bugs described in the following thread..

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=39956

I know of other tanks both on the Island and Mainland that are affected. Some people have reported no problems, although my experience doesn't agree with this. I am seeing damage from these "mites".
Iodine dips seem to kill them, and I'll be running some tests with epsom salts as a dip.
To look at your own acros, you'll probably need a magnifying glass.

As an added bonus to the tank tour, I'll have a frag infested with these for viewing under a dissecting scope. Kinda neat watching them eat my corals!! :roll:
christyf5
03-18-2003, 05:09 PM
Brad, that totally sucks :(

However, I'd really like to see these things up close so this will be a great addition to the tour. I'll have my magnifying glass out tonight to inspect my corals as well. I didn't realize they were so small. I was thinking sort of flatworm size.

Thanks for the link.

Christy :)
Aquattro
03-18-2003, 05:10 PM
Christy, they are very tiny. I didn't even know I had them until someone with much better eyes told me!!
christyf5
03-18-2003, 05:11 PM
Yes, I visually inspected my corals the other day after talking to you and thought I was safe as I didn't see any. Nuts to that. I think I may borrow a dissecting scope from work tonight.

Christy :)
Aquattro
03-18-2003, 05:15 PM
Christy, if you have decent eyesight, you should be able to see them. They move fairly quickly, so look for little dots moving around.
One_Divided
03-18-2003, 05:34 PM
Here is the best pic I could get. I have seen no negative effects from the bugs thus far..

http://members.shaw.ca/limestone2/bugs01.jpg
BCOrchidGuy
03-23-2003, 04:31 AM
Do they only go after Acro?

Thanks for the heads up, I've never seen them before NOR heard of them before.
Aquattro
03-23-2003, 06:15 AM
Yes, they only live on acropora.
BCOrchidGuy
03-23-2003, 04:46 PM
Great, thanks for that, if I ever get some Acro I will take a magnifying glass (Not for the invoice) lol sorry folks....