Lawnmower Blenny For My Tank/Algae Control 9/28/09
Hello,
<Hi Matthew>
I have read through many of your helpful FAQs on lawnmower blennies but there are still some things I'm not too sure about before I purchase one. I have a 100 gallon tank with 2 clowns and a Flame Hawk. Recently the tank has become the victim of a nasty algae bloom. It appears to be Bryopsis algae. It is definitely not hair algae. It is bristly, quite slow growing, only grows to about 2cm in length, and is very tough. Removing it with my fingernails is a painstaking process! Quite some force is needed to remove
it from the rocks and often a chunk of the rock will come off with the algae.
I have always had a nice growth of Halimeda on one of my rocks and I wish to keep this algae. The Halimeda is still growing on this rock despite some of the bristly algae growing there too.
Anyway my question is will a lawnmower blenny eat the Halimeda before the bristly algae?
<I've never witnessed a Lawnmower Blenny eat either of the two.>
And will it even eat the tough, bristly algae at all? I know that they eat hair algae but this stuff is better described as 'brush' algae. I don't want to buy one of these blennies if it will eat my Halimeda. Are there any
other alternatives?
<Yes, read here and linked files above.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/algaeconMar.htm>
Please help.
Thank you.
<You're welcome. James (Salty Dog)>
Matthew.