mindeeo January 8, 2012 Share January 8, 2012 I have read here on WAMAS, and other places, a way to discern red coraline from cyano. In sum, it seems that cyano should come off the rock easily, while coraline would not. That being said, the color of the growth on my rocks looks more like cyano (deep red, velvet looking) based on pics I have seen, but it is hard like rock. Ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 8, 2012 Share January 8, 2012 Hard = coralline, soft = cyano. Coralline incorporates calcium into it and becomes a hard skeleton while cyano is a living "mat" of organisms that are soft and mushy. It will expand and contract based on available light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindeeo January 8, 2012 Author Share January 8, 2012 So it is really that easy? Maybe I am making this more than it should be... Thanks for the confirmation! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 8, 2012 Share January 8, 2012 Yup, it's pretty simple when you think about the minerals taken in by coralline to help it grow. Another easy way to tell is to just blow it off with a jet of water. The cyano will typically lift off or just be sucked off of the rock/sand while coralline won't be bothered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindeeo January 8, 2012 Author Share January 8, 2012 Great! And better yet, the coraline is a great color of red that matches my wall and now I don't need to try to get rid of it (not that I was successful...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubberFrog January 9, 2012 Share January 9, 2012 This is great news. Our rock came with a very light purple encrustration. Recently (several weeks now) a deep red "velvet" has begun to grow. It definately does not blow or suction off. Even a scrape with a fingernail (my wife is better for that) has no effect. This new stuff looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 9, 2012 Share January 9, 2012 You'll find that when you have the right conditions, many different colors of coralline algae will grow and make your rock a little bit tougher for nuisance algae to settle on. If you really want to see it explode in growth, add some magnesium to your water along with calcium supplements - it'll take off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite January 9, 2012 Share January 9, 2012 I'm not sure if I agree with this. I have had stuff that has the color of cyano, that was very hard to scrape off the rock. While it was quite difficult, it was not like scraping off coraline. Coraline flakes, this stuff does not flake. Scratching it leaves a scratch rather than a chip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubberFrog January 9, 2012 Share January 9, 2012 So what do you think it is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindeeo January 9, 2012 Author Share January 9, 2012 And simplistically, is it bad or good? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 10, 2012 Share January 10, 2012 Not all coralline is like that, some is a bit less hard. Of course it could be red turf algae, but that would feel a bit like felt and not hard to the touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubberFrog January 10, 2012 Share January 10, 2012 I suppose if it is some form of hard cyano, or turf algae, the solution is the same- increase flow and reduce nutrients. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 January 10, 2012 Share January 10, 2012 There are no hard forms of cyano, but turf algae can be different. Again, you can see the difference if you have seen it before, though. The turf algae will have a fabric like texture to it and it'll look like a little tiny lawn for lack of a better description. Post a picture of what you've got and we'll take a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefoholic January 10, 2012 Share January 10, 2012 Agreed ^^^ I have all colors of coralline algae on my rocks. I think it is just so different from cyano. A picture would help immensely, tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubberFrog January 11, 2012 Share January 11, 2012 (edited) Here are a couple of pics.The second pic is a close up of the blotch seen in the upper right of the first pic. Edited January 11, 2012 by RubberFrog Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefoholic January 12, 2012 Share January 12, 2012 No need to worry my friend! That looks like nice red coralline algae to me! I have some of those patches as well. My rock is 3 years old... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindeeo January 12, 2012 Author Share January 12, 2012 Thanks.... (big sigh) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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