|
These two pictures are of Berghia that hatched from their egg coils just 6 weeks ago.
You can see by the measuring stick they are already 10 to 11 millimeters long. In the second picture
of the undersides of the trio you can see the white egg mass even at this early age. The center one
has a visible white egg mass in the posterior half of its body and so does the one on the left.
The one on the right has a slightly translucent body and you can see through it to the base of
the brown colored cerata. The pictures are enlarged for easier viewing.
These are your hunters and we make every effort to sell them at or over 12 mm in length. This measure for our Berghia is their body length and excludes the tail and appendages. Their length
is a variable state depending on their activity. At times they will expell water or curl up
to rest. Once they average 12 mm or longer while hunting, a little over
6 to 8 weeks, this is when we offer them. We do offer smaller, younger ones on one of the specials and the ones
we give for free are normally smaller. As the picture below shows, even our baby Berghia go after
the Aiptasia. Our young egg bearing Berghia are still very thin bodied and will grow considerably to well
over 12mm in the first month in your tank. They attack and eat Aiptasia and are very effective, very active
at this age and size. We could compare them to the human teenage years at this size and everyone knows
how much teens can eat! Someone once said that only adult Berghia are effective but with our selective
breeding, our young Berghia are effective in removing Aiptasia.
Young Berghia ship easily, acclimate easily and should do well
for you in your tank. Just follow the instructions on the
Acclimation Page
of this site and handle
gently, taking your time with all of the Berghia you purchase. These are young adult Berghia, they are breeding and often will be carrying eggs to be laid in your tank. They are not full grown yet. Adult full grown Berghia can develop bodies that are over 30mm long (1 & 1/4 inches) plus
their thread like tail that helps them handle swift currents and stay attached to the rocks. It takes
quite a number of aiptasia to develop them to their full adult size. We think they should eat your
aiptasia and earn their keep. They are very active at this early adult age and consume many aiptasia
while laying thousands of eggs and growing larger in your system.
Depending on the resolution your computer monitor is set at, the above pictures are enlarged
approximately 3x for easier viewing.
|
(This is a METRIC UNIT of measure in Millimeters
NOT Inches.)
|
|
|
|
Berghia Colony And Egg Ribbons Under a Meat Coral (magnified apx. x5)
|
|
Berghia can slip into small cracks and holes. Look closely to see small oysters, the tube and feather of a small feather duster, other common marine animals and the Berghia colony. There are 10 egg ribbons and at least 8 Berghia visible or partially visible in the picture. Can you find them all?
|
|
Baby Berghia, The Jr Aiptasia SWAT Team on Attack! (magnified x10)
(IE: A Dime Would Cover Most of This Picture)
|
|
|
Adult Berghia Pair (magnified apx. x10)
|
|
|
Many Young Adults Display Patterns on Their Backs (magnified apx. x10)
|
|
Two Adults in Full Color! (magnified x10)
(Very Difficult to Capture the True Pastel Lavendar and Yellow)
|
|
Many nudibranch colors are actually derived from their food source. These colors developed from a very yellow strain of Aiptasia pallida in these full grown Berghia verrucicornis (AKA: Aeolidiella stephanieae).
|
|
|
Adult Berghia Begin The Mating Dance (magnified x10)
|
|
|
Adult Berghia In Living Ying Yang Sculpture (magnified x10)
Captive Bred, Tank Raised for Multiple Generations!
(This site, unique information and all images are exclusively copyrighted by INSTAR.)
|
|
The symbol we recognize as Ying Yang is actually the Chinese symbol "Yin Yang". It represents
the ancient Chinese understanding of how things work. The outer circle represents "everything",
the dark and light shapes within the circle represent the interaction of two energies,
called "yin" (black) and "yang" (white), that cause everything to happen. The shapes are not
completely dark or light, just as things in life are not completely black or white.
The Ying Yang symbol has become known for balance in judgements. On a larger scope, all life
seems to be a balance, there is good and bad, give and take in everything God created. Our Berghia
nudibranches take out Aiptasia pallida (Atlantic Carribean Aiptasia sp.), Aiptasia pulchella
(Tropical Pacific Aiptasia sp.) and other Aiptasia sp. giving new hope
and new life to your reef! It is well documented in scientific literature that these Berghia
verrucicornis nudibranches are specific target predators, never bothering any thing else in your
reef, only seeking to kill Aiptasia in tireless effort to balance the living ecosystem, controling
the pest Aiptasia anemone.
|
|
Adult Berghia v. Laying Eggs
Jr Aiptasia SWAT Team at 3 Wks, 2mm (x20)
