Infected Halimeda gorauii 12/9/10 Hello, how is your day going? <Okay, but a cold has really debilitated me> So, I came home this morning a looked around in my tank some and I see these green things all over my Halimeda gorauii. The Halimeda is completely dead (bleach white) and when I turned off the pumps and powerheads to pull the Halimeda out I see that the green things look like some sort of parasitic algae or fungus. They look like tiny trees or broccoli. <Neat!> I've attached some images of the things. Can you tell me what it is that I'm dealing with here? <Mmm, not really; can only guess... the "stems" look whitish... could be a Thallophyte... an algae of some sort, though none I've ever seen looks like this macroscopically; or even a fungus of some sort. Would really like to see some microscopic images...> I have Halimeda gorauii about 1.5 ft diagonally down from the infected piece (which has been removed from the tank) and it looks perfectly fine. My Halimeda tuna which is on the opposite side of the tank looks perfectly healthy as well and I didn't see the little tree things anywhere else in the tank. <Interesting> Any help would be appreciated-looking for what the name of this stuff may be. Thank you. Tristan <Thank you for sharing. Bob Fenner>

Re: Infected Halimeda gorauii 12/9/10 Luckily I happen to have a microscope of my own. Here are some images of the parasite. <Ahh!> I held my camera up to the eyepiece of the microscope, so this is the best I could get. I also included a pic of chloroplasts I saw inside a cell of Chaetomorpha area. It doesn't have anything to do with the subject, just a random photo :) <I still don't know what this is, but am more intrigued... Perhaps sending these images about to phycologists/algologists will provide an answer. BobF>

Re: Infected Halimeda gorauii 12/10/10 Would you happen to have any email address' for such experts? I wouldn't know where to start (not really anyways). <Mmm, I don't know any that well currently. Faced w/ the same task I'd search online with the string: American marine phycologists and likely end up here: http://www.psaalgae.org/website/resources/links.html and search through the societies... and write the authors of pertinent/taxonomic articles. BobF>

Algae (?) ID 9/11/10 Hi All! <Lea...> I have two (new) unidentifiable "things" growing on my tank glass. The first (photo 2.jpg) appears to be a green filamentous algae; however, I'm not sure and wanted to check. <Can't tell from your images... do you have a microscope?> The small "clump" is anchored by a brown dot (if that helps). If it is, should I scrape it away? Or let it be? <I'd do the latter. Will likely "pass" of its own accord in succession> The second object (photo 4.jpg) is a small white dot with what looks like filaments coming off. They kind of look like really really tiny brittle stars. <These are Hydromedusae... See here: http://wetwebmedia.com/hyzoidf5.htm Maybe hatching pods for little crustaceans (I have a lot of amphipods crawling around on the glass as well, though know they're good). Just so you know, I don't have any brittle stars in my tank. Well, not that I know of. I guess something could hitched a ride. Sorry the picture is a bit blurry, but they're really tiny! Thanks for all your help! You guys rock! Lea <Be chatting. Bob Fenner>

Re: Algae (?) ID (from 9/10/10) Hi Bob, <Lea> I do have a microscope! <Figured... w/ the .edu suffix...> Unfortunately it's not set up with a camera, but I was able to take some pictures through the scope with my camera that are ok, though the light isn't the best. Sorry for that. Since I wrote you yesterday the algae has definitely become more established, though it's still just on the glass. I'm guessing it's a Cladophora, though it's definitely much smaller than most of the pictures I've seen (the scale in the scope view is mm), so may also be a type of Bryopsis? <Mmm, maybe... a uniseriate branching Green/Chlorophyte in any case> Your help is much appreciated. Thank you! Lea <Welcome! BobF>

Red Circles 9/6/2010
Hi team,
Thanks again guys for all of your help. I just have a quick question about my tank. When I bought it from the guy who owned it first it had these red circles on it. I was able to scrape it off and clean it well. I've had to clean it about every 6 months now. It's not soft or hair-like. It's hard red circles that range in size from tiny to quarter sized. A fingernail can
take them off with enough effort but I use a metal scraper. They grow very low in the tank. either just above or below the gravel line. Any idea what they are, what causes them, and how to get rid of them for good. They do not seem to be affecting the fish and my nitrates all seem to be in order.
I did have a random ammonia spike recently from removing some fake ornaments and replacing with more driftwood. (wanted to make my tank more real). The spike has returned to normal since then. Thanks guys.
Phill
<This sounds like calcareous red algae, sometimes called coralline algae.
Common in marine tanks, but as far as I know not found in freshwater tanks.
Usually they are in areas where there is bright light, so having them grow below the gravel is weird. So they might be something else, perhaps another type of red algae like those called spot algae. Spot algae is usually green to blue-black, and notoriously difficult to remove because it adheres to the glass so well. Again, a cosmetic issue rather than anything more serious. In any case, if you can wipe them off the glass, they're unlikely to be anything toxic, so I'd not worry about them too much. Cheers, Neale.>

Strange White "Hair" on Rocks 7/26/10 Hello Wet Web Crew, <Jenny> About two months ago, I bought 3 pieces of "base rock" that looked like white manufactured rock, even though it was said to be "Reef Rock" (from reefcleaners.org). Silly enough, I cycled it in water for two weeks, just in case there was anything living on it that could be harmful to my aquarium. Anyway, to get to the point, during the last week, (only) these three rocks have sprouted what looks like 1/4" clear hairs everywhere on them (see photo). The "hairs" sway in the current and almost look like a velvet fuzz. <Good desc.> My tank has been established for 2+ years, without any new additions in the last few months except these rocks. Any idea what the "hair" is and if it could be harmful to my fishes and corals? <Is likely an algae or mix of algal and Protists... not harmful... and will "go" of its own accord in time> Also, I've checked all of my tank conditions and all seem fine (Nitrates are close to 0 most of the time due to skimming, water changes, etc, so I am in doubt of it being a bad algae even though it could be). Any help in identifying this would be greatly appreciated! -Jenny <A microscopic examination would very likely be more definitive, but barring such investigation, I would not worry. Bob Fenner>

Algae hitchhiker ID: Acetabularia crenulata Mermaid's Wineglass 7/26/2010 Check this out........I just spotted this in my fish only tank. <Cool!> It has no live rock or substrate, or should I say it was started with none! <Looks like some crushed shells in any case.> What is it, I assume a plant/algae of some kind. <It is an algae, and a relatively rare one (in the pet industry anyways). It is Acetabularia crenulata, or commonly known as mermaid's wineglass algae. A nice find!> <You can read some about it here: http://www.google.com/custom?hl=en&safe=off&sitesearch=www.WetWebMedia.com&& sa=X&ei=J8pMTLeZJ4H58AbgjeEy&ved=0CAwQBSgA&q=mermaids+wineglass&spell=1 > Regards <MikeV>

Algae Control, reading 6/15/10
Hello crew. I need help with an algae problem. I have a 28G Nanocube that has been running for about 6 months. I have been struggling to control algae for most of that time.
<Small volume/systems are hard to maintain... harder than larger>
Right now I have three types of algae that are out of control. The tank looks like a jungle. The first is short brownish 'hair' with gas bubbles at the tips. I believe this may becalothrix Cyano from the research I've done. This stuff covers most of my live rock. The second is a bright green slimy film which grows very quickly over my substrate. It peels off in layers taking a good amount of substrate with it. The third is long brown 'hair' algae.
Here is more information about my tank. Ph is 8.1. Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and phosphate are all zero. These have been confirmed by my LFS. I have about 20 to 22 lbs of live rock, and livestock consists of a clown and a scissor tail goby.
Based on research, I've tried the following to control the problem with no success:
- Shortened my lighting cycle from 12 hrs of daylight to 10 hrs per day.
- UseRODI water (have been doing this since my first water change after tank was set up)
- Increased frequency of water changes from once every other week to once per week. I typically change 3 gallons, but increased to 4a couple of weeks ago.
- Decreasedthe amount of food put into the tank.
- Physically removed rocks from the tank and scrubbed. The rock looks good immediately following this, but the 'gasbubble' algae quickly returns.
- Physically harvested the long hair and green film as best I could, but again it returns in 24 to 48 hrs.
- Lastly, I installed a HOB skimmer last week. It's been running for about 4 days since break-in and is pulling a nice amount of tea colored skimmate. So far the algae'snot been affected, but it may be too early to tell.
About the only thing I don't have is a cleanup crew, although I don't see how a handful of snails and hermits could make a dent. I had a lawnmower blenny which died recently (he was my favorite) -- he did a good job on the long brown hair algae but wouldn't touch anything else. My LFS suggests using a chemical cleaner(Chemi-clean),
<Nah>
but that won't address the root cause whatever it is.
<Yeah>
I'm running out of options -- what more should I do? Thanks.
Paul
<Read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/avoidingalgaeproblesm.htm
and the linked files above... esp. re DSB's, Refugiums, Nutrient Export... Bob Fenner>