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coraline algae


jimlin

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as i walk around the beach and check out local divers pictures of the rocks, fish and corals i rarely see any coraline on any of the rocks around here. on the rare occasion that i spot coraline on a rock, i only see small specs and usually only one color, unlike what one sees in the aquarium these days. i did grab a couple of small rubbles with pink and green coraline to seed my tank, but why do i feel the need to have coraline growing in my tank? is it really a sign of a healthy aquarium to have coraline algae growing in your tank? why does it not grow in the ocean like how they grow in an well established tank? this is just something i been thinking about ever since i setup this tank.

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I have dived in several locations and have rarely seen much coraline algae in the ocean.  I don't know why exactly that is, but I have never assumed (and I think it's wrong to assume) that coraline algae means you have a healthy tank.

 

Coraline looks much prettier than rocks that are covered in the layer of algae film, or short stocky algae/macro-algae that you often see in the ocean or before coraline forms.  I think that's why we strive for it, but that doesn't really answer why other things don't grow as well, thus letting coraline grow better, in our aquariums.

 

An aquarum I've had where coraline hasn't completely overgrown though, have had the rocks covered in some one sort or another of algae or macro-algae.  The tank was extremely healthy, set up for 2-3 years, growing sps very well, etc, but the coraline never took over for some reason.  I thought it was a good thing though, because the macro-algae/algae gave a lot of food for the grazing fish, especially dwarf angels (sponges as well), it provided home to a lot of smaller critters (that I think are a better sign of a healthy tank), and gave more to look at in the tank.

 

I think we're misguided in looking just to coraline as a healthy indicator for tanks, and I know other things are just as good, if not better indicators.

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I just came back from the Caribbeans last week, and snorkeled at several islands. I noticed a huge amount of coralline right off the beach at St Kitts.

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I just came back from the Caribbeans last week, and snorkeled at several islands. I noticed a huge amount of coralline right off the beach at St Kitts.

hmm. interesting. wonder why i dont see the same thing here in hawaii. even the live rocks sold here at the local fish stores dont have any coraline in it. it just looks dirty and has a bunch of algae on them. almost like blades of grass. different than what i see at the states. have you checked out their local fish stores while you were there?

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If there is a large population of certain urchins, limpets, and or chitons they can wipe out coralline algae. It could be a depth and light penetration issue. The pictures you are looking at might come from deeper areas where light is not strong enough for the algae to grow.

 

Although it is nice to have some pink color on the live rock I don't really think it is worth the hassle of constantly scraping the stuff off of the glass every few days. Plus it can be a large user of calcium and other trace elements in our tanks. I have read that coralline can make live rock almost useless because as it encrusts it seals off all the pores and entrances that go into the rock where nitrate reduction happens.

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I have read that coralline can make live rock almost useless because as it encrusts it seals off all the pores and entrances that go into the rock where nitrate reduction happens.

wow, i never even thought about that.

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