Help!!! Bryopsis?

[teamreefers]

We're having an outbreak of this algea. It is covering our frag plugs and eggcrate.
We cleaned it the best we could and it just comes right back.

I have a feeling it is bryopsis. Anyone know for sure?

Here is a photo.

And here is a closeup.

Jack

 

[Mikeyjer]

It looks like the starting of it, hard to say for sure. I would take care of it ASAP cause I would tell you from a personal experience, DON'T take any chances!!!! IF I could go back to the beginning when I first found it on a frag of coral. I would take that frag out and toss it right in the trash!!!! Otherwise, you can find things that would eat it. It's hit or miss on that part....I have found a Regal that would eat it all down to nothing....

 

[gsusfreak]

looks like bryopsis to me to....and like mikey, i know from experience to toss that as soon as i see it....but i still have some in one of my tanks, and it looks just like that

 

[waynesworld]

Get some hungry fish to control it. I took a piece of Michels and my fish cleaned it up. Will see if it comes back though.

 

[Mikeyjer]

Hungry fish will go after it like Wayne says!!! I watch those fish gobble up big pieces of it, I guess I feed my fish too much, that's why they're lazy......

 

[teamreefers]

Michael,
I've been reading up on this stuff and it seems I recall your name on thread where you tried elevated magnesium and it didn't work for you.
Is this correct? What problems did you see?

We've just added a very small Scopas tang. We'll see if he can make a dent in it.

Thanks
Jack

 

[Mikeyjer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12180062#post12180062 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by teamreefers
Michael,
I've been reading up on this stuff and it seems I recall your name on thread where you tried elevated magnesium and it didn't work for you.
Is this correct? What problems did you see?

We've just added a very small Scopas tang. We'll see if he can make a dent in it.

Thanks
Jack

It did work, BUT they still came back! It also killed off ALL my snails and it made my tank so toxic that I wasn't able to keep any snails alive even after MANY water changes. It took me over 5 months and many water changes later before I was able to keep snails alive in my tank. A Scopas tang isn't gonna do it. People had luck using Yellow Tang, Foxface, Regal Tang, Sailfin Tang, and other types of Rabbit Fish. For me, I got lucky with a Regal Tang that tears it all up to nothing, but he eats ALL kinds of algae anyway. I used to have Razor Caulerpa, some sort of grass algae, some pretty Oga (sp?), bryopsis, etc. in the bowfront and he ate them down to nothing. Once he started going at it, my Foxface and Tomini went after it too. So did that Yellow Tang you've given me. I just wish someone would touch it in the 55.....I've been dosing AlgaeFix and it keeps them at bay, but doesn't get rid of them. At least they don't grow as fast for me to yank. I'm fixing to try to take out some fish and change them to some different fish to try and see if I can take care of it. One last effort, IF this doesn't work. Pool bleach would be my final solution.

 

[Mikeyjer]

Hey Jack,

Digging up your old thread, did you ever find a solution to bryopsis?? I got lucky to acquire two tangs that eats it like mad. A few who have seen my tank could tell you how badly my tank looks covered from top to bottom by this stuff. After putting these two tangs Kole and Sailfin. My algae problem have gone wayyyyyyyyy down. Almost algae free! After battling with it for the past three years I was about to give up and dump pool bleach in there, but now I don't have to anymore. I have to find a picture for you on how badly it was covered. I can't find my camera charger anywhere.....I'll take a new picture one of these days on how it looks now. Here's my observation on tangs that eats bryopsis, both time I got the tangs when they're young, when I got the regal he was pretty small, these 2 new tangs are also small. I leave'em with bunch of algae and they went crazy eating it. I might be wrong, but that's my observation is when you get them young, you might be able to get them to eat it better. Either that or I just got lucky on both cases.....Let me know how things are going!

 

[teamreefers]

yep added the scopas tangs and the bryopsis is gone.

 

[gsusfreak]

mikey ...i want to see a pic

 

[Mikeyjer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12511037#post12511037 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by teamreefers
yep added the scopas tangs and the bryopsis is gone.

It was a baby Scopas wasn't it??? I was not sure if it would get rid of it at that time cause it wasn't one that was listed to rid bryopsis. But like I've said, I noticed that young tangs seem to do better ridding algae then adult tangs....That's just my observation.....I'm glad you got rid of it!!!

 

[Mikeyjer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12511830#post12511830 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by gsusfreak
mikey ...i want to see a pic

John,

You were here, you remember how BAD it was.....You should look at it now, it's like night and day, BIG difference!!!! I just try to activate my replacement phone and it said to call customer service and they're closed right now so I have to wait til tomorrow to take pictures with my phone....maybe I'll use Jerry's phone.....

 

[Mikeyjer]

here's a crappy picture of it from the phone...

 

[gsusfreak]

wow!!!!!...that looks great!

 

[teamreefers]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12515719#post12515719 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mikeyjer
It was a baby Scopas wasn't it???

Yes they were small. The bryopsis was in our frag tanks so we added one Scopas to each tank along with a bunch of astreas.
The bryopsis was completely gone within 4 days. Don't know if the astreas helped or not.

Now we are having a small outbreak of derbesia in our display. We added a phosphate reactor and it seems to be turing brown.

Jack

 

[Mikeyjer]

That's great to hear....I've tried just about everything there is out there controlling bryopsis and everything works at first and they still come back later on. Best control would be my fish!!!! I would have to say those $5.99 turbos at Fins does a GREAT job as well!!!! I need to replace some of mine because of hermits.....they massacre them every so often.....