Aptasia observation and question

[arking_mark]

So I added a rock to my display tank several months ago. Recently, I moved it to my observation tank. Prior to moving the rock, there was no aptasia in either tank. The observation tank gets all its water from the display tank so that they are in lock step with each other. After a couple weeks, the rock that was moved developed aptasia. Not sure how this is possible unless aptasia can go dormant or I have something in the display tank that was keeping it in check...and I can't think of anything in the tank that would do that.

 

Any thoughts? Has anyone else seen this before? 

 

The aptasia has been eliminated with Aptasia X, so no worries. 

[Jon Lazar]

Actually this doesn't surprise me.  I've found aiptasia in out-of-sight places like between rocks, inside the little plastic top plate of a MJ 1200, or inside a PVC pipe.  They can hide in there for a long time, then one day move (to your observation tank rock) or reproduce.

 

I keep a peppermint shrimp in my Red Sea Max.  I always know when the current shrimp has died, because I start seeing tiny aiptasia popping up.

[BtmDweller]

If they finish off the aiptasia its a good idea to feed permint shrimp at night preventing them from starving/dying off.