Microfauna bloom!

[Shilpan]

So since I added the two corals I've noticed all these interesting hitchhikers popping up on the rocks.

So over got the bristle stars in the display tank. And then I noticed the clownfish B picking on these lice looking things. Say a few scampering around the rocks. Then I opened up the refugium which I hadn't looked at in a week and BAM there's a war going on here. I see little green worms (1000's) on the glass, isopods EVERYWHERE which I identified as a beneficial Munnid-isopod, and spirorbid worms all over as before.

2 questions

1)Now there's is a healthy patch of cyano on a rock in the refugium. Do I need to clean this or worry about it overtaking the fuge and killing my Macroalgae? The tiny 1cm patches in my tank I clean during water changes.

2) do I need to do anything special to keep this biodiversity up? Or just feeding my two clowns will suffice? Are there any sorts of fish that become options to me now because of these things as a food source?

 

[lmforbis]

I wouldn't worry about the cyanogen in the fuge. I manually turn the chaeto every few days, this first allows the bottom to get light, dislodges any cyano on to and it shakes lose som of the pods and allows them to go to the tank. The pods open the possibility of a mandarin in the future but not for several months.

 

[Shilpan]

Ok thanks for the advice

Yes I started turning the chaeto last week and I've noticed the diatoms are falling off it and it says started growing. The caulerpa is a beast though, I remove 95% of it each week and it all grows back. There must be lots of nitrates coming off the once dead rock in my tank but my macroalgae is soaking it all up so I only read 10-20ppm nitrates

Thanks as always

 

[lmforbis]

Capulara will grow like crazy.

 

[florida joe]

You don't want the cyano to go from your refug to your DT siphon it off the rock when ever you see it

 

[Shilpan]

Ok thanks Joe
Actually I think it started in my DT first, I had patches sitting there for a week but they aren't growing much. I'll siphon it off next water change. I also direct a power head at different patches every few days, that seems to make it go away.

So isopods eat diatoms do they? I swear the big ones are eating the diatom film.

 

[florida joe]

I have never heard of isopods eating diatoms hard outer shell As far as cyano as you know its a bacteria and not an alage. once you see it in your thank i would not direct a power head at it but siphon it out

 

[Shilpan]

Ah ok thank you, will siphon it then.

In that case shouldn't I just siphon and scrub all the cyano in my refuge too?

 

[Shilpan]

Oh or is the point keeping it there so it uses up nutrients and keeps my display clean?

And so as long as I clean the stuff I need my display, it doesn't matter what happpens in the refuge and the macro will be fine?

 

[florida joe]

IMO you don't want cyano anywhere in your system

 

[deejeff0442]

Agree with Joe.
I never understood why people go through all the trouble building scrubbers and whatever system to get rid of algae?
I just put a big reactor with phosphate remover in it and done.
I have next to no algae . I don't want light of any kind in my sump

 

[florida joe]

word to the wish WHAT HE SAID

 

[2quills]

IMO cyano needs nothing more than a nitrogen source and light to thrive. It creates it's own food source via photosynthesis and nitrogen fixation which produces oxygen as a byproduct.. That nitrogen can come from anything such as co2, amino acids, ammonia, nitrate etc. It will utilize phosphate but doesn't need it to survive.

It's one of the oldest living life forms on the planet. It exists in our systems whether we see it or not.

 

[lmforbis]

I've got to agree. Except the part where you can get nitrogen from CO2. I have had cyano grow with no significant phosphate but I do have plenty of nitrate.

 

[2quills]

Good catch Imforbis.

I should have said dissolved nitrogen gas. Not carbon even though it utilizes that as well.

And for what it's worth I think algae provides benefits to the system that skimmers and phosphate removers alone dont provide which is why I like having macro or a scrubber. A dedicated location to thrive vs the display. Though some people don't mind a little bit in the display. it looks natural.

 

[Shilpan]

As to what was said above about why do people bother building scrubbers,

I don't have a scrubber but I use a refugium because it's much cheaper than an expensive reactor plus the cost of continually buying new replacement media (which are more expensive here since it's all imported).

I too would consider a reactor if it wasn't as expensive as it is.