Copper Banded Butterfly...not visibly eating

[rayjay]

As all of my fish are treated with hypo in a quarantine tank, I brought my copperband home and placed it in quarantine, feeding live brine shrimp (wasn't eating at the LFS) until I was sure he was doing well. At this point I introduced frozen brine as well as live and kept doing this but once he started eating frozen I gradually weened him off the live.
After the 7 weeks in hypo treatment, I added him to one of my reef tanks at night after lights out, and moved a couple of rocks around to confuse the powder blue a bit.
Haven't had any problem since, and no aptaisia in that tank either.
My other tanks had no room for an extra fish like a CB, so I nuked the aptaisia with hydrochloric acid in a hypodermic needle.
I've been a lot of years now with no sign of any of them.
I tried pep. shrimp but they wouldn't touch anything but the very small ones.

[JPotter]

I did ask the LFS about putting the CBB into a smaller quiet tank with lower light and flow to start with and they said no need..go figure. What is a hypo Tx?
Does HCl significantly decrease the water pH?
I have been picking away at the aptaisia..they go black with grey filaments and when I twirl the syringe with 20g x1" needle around the aptaisia remains adhere to it for removal. I have also used aptaisia paste..I have no kalk to make a paste with..it goes on as a thick film and the rock beneath also bleaches out. The problem is my tank is deep and I have lots of live rock that I can't reach and many surfaces I can't even see.
I will continue to pick away at it. Also will consider another go with CBB trying a smaller, quieter tank to start and the tips others have so kindly shared..I will wait a bit as am upset over the loss. If they are catching with cyanide a large number will be doomed whatever I do...they will be able to tick along for a while but cellular comproise will continue to progress for some time. I guess they have it down to an art...capture live, ship live, get to LFS live and stay alive long enough to make the sale
I will likely order some kalk (plus Ca and Mg) from littlesilvermax. Is there any recipe for the kalk paste or do you just mix it with H2O to make a slurry?
Thx again

[rayjay]

Hypo = hyposalinity= lowering the s.g.
HCl can reduce the alkalinity and then the pH so I only zapped four or five at a time.
I tried kalk paste and vinegar before that and they kept coming back.
Quarantine tank allows it to get comfortable after the stress of shipping to the LFS from where it was caught, and, allows for no competition for food so it will eat well over the quarantine period and build up it's strength for the next challenge, to place it in the show tank.
LFS saying not needed but if it dies then you need to make more profit for them by purchasing another one.

[fkshiu]

Originally Posted by JPotter

Is there any recipe for the kalk paste or do you just mix it with H2O to make a slurry?
Thx again

The more kalk you mix with water, the more potent the slurry will be. But at the same time the you will be affecting pH more so use judiciously and carefully. I like using the precision tips and syringes from old Salifert test kits to apply the slurry. You need a needle point to make sure the aiptasia injests the kalk. I've been using this method along with peppermints for years quite successfully (knock on wood!).

[dan4cbw]

In the last few years the Blackworm Farms have dwindled down to two. All Blackworms are farmed by either Aquatic Foods or another California supplier.
Contrary to what is being told out there, there are only two Blackworm farms and both are in California

Here are some pics of the Blackworm Farm.


The first pic is of our three production ponds


http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/...images/cbw.jpg


The 2nd is our main harvesting pond. Worms
from the production ponds are moved to the
harvesting pond for 30 days.

http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/...mages/cbw2.jpg

This photo is of our guys harvesting the Blackworms.

http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/...mages/cbw3.jpg


This photo is of our cement purging pond.
Here we leave them for 5-7 days in a bare bottom
cement pond. ( no food allowed)

http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/...mages/cbw4.jpg

This photo is of our indoor falicity. Here we clean a 2nd and 3rd
time. What you see in this pic are 30 100-120 lb holding
tanks. We hold the cleaned worms here for 7-10 days.
Then transport them to our Airport wharehouse where they
are held and chilled down to 40-45 degrees and then shipped
via Fed Ex or out of Los Angeles airport.

http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/...mages/cbw5.jpg


Anyone with any questions about our Blackworms
feel free to email to blkworm@aol.com

Dan
http://aquaticfoods.com/Blackworms.html

[naesco]

Dan, thanks for posting this interesting information.