Aquarist007
New member
I agree ==part of my monthly maintenance is to drain the sump and vacuum it out with a wet vac.
How to FEED your reef tank so that your corals will really GROW, instead of ho-hum...
- Thread starter capecoral
- Start date
I agree ==part of my monthly maintenance is to drain the sump and vacuum it out with a wet vac.
Hylinur, Instant Ocean makes a dosable "biopellet" that you can squirt into your tank. After about 1 month of using, my nitrates went undetectable. The only issue is that it gets expensive buying bottles of that stuff. I was also dosing Brightwell MB7, one or two drops per day. So using that product, you can effectively try biopellets for about 16 bucks. 
In an attempt to save money, I promptly bought an Ecosystem HOB refugium with miracle mud substrate and chaetomorpha. Nutrients are still in check, and now I have some salty algae to trim once a week instead.
In an attempt to save money, I promptly bought an Ecosystem HOB refugium with miracle mud substrate and chaetomorpha. Nutrients are still in check, and now I have some salty algae to trim once a week instead.
Aquarist007
New member
Hylinur, Instant Ocean makes a dosable "biopellet" that you can squirt into your tank. After about 1 month of using, my nitrates went undetectable. The only issue is that it gets expensive buying bottles of that stuff. I was also dosing Brightwell MB7, one or two drops per day. So using that product, you can effectively try biopellets for about 16 bucks.
In an attempt to save money, I promptly bought an Ecosystem HOB refugium with miracle mud substrate and chaetomorpha. Nutrients are still in check, and now I have some salty algae to trim once a week instead.
I personally don't agree with anyone of that stuff---I too use the natural way for controlling nitrates and phosphates
FlyinggFish
New member
Damn. I do drain the sump and vacuum with a wet vac, but I just didn't think it was really necessary to do all of that work. I was thinking that maybe doing that would effect something in the tank's chemistry negatively.
"The other half of the story."
"Reef aquarists hopefully now understand that they can greatly increase their coral growth by feeding plankton (and lots of it) to their tanks. And especially, by feeding the plankton slowly throughout the night (not all at once), which is when and how corals eat the most."
"But a problem arises in aquariums: Water quality. Anyone who has tried heavy coral feeding, or maybe any coral feeding at all, has seen their water quality go down quickly, because the uneaten food starts rotting and generating nitrates and phosphates. Not only do you have to stop the feeding, but the water quality then needs to be fixed so that the corals can at least get back to growing the way they were originally (bad water quality can slow down or stop coral growth). This is not a problem in the ocean, because even with the gigantic amounts of food that is fed to the corals, the ocean has its own nitrate and phosphate filters, and it does the filtering quite quickly. So what can you do?"
"Copy the ocean, that's what. This means copy the ocean exactly, they way it processes its own water quality. It's easy, and you might already be doing it; or maybe you just need to do it more. It starts by understanding the most important process in the ocean: Primary Production."
"Primary Production is one of the most commonly used terms in ocean science, and it occurs when phytoplankton grows in sunlight. It is called "primary" because it's the "first step" or the "bottom" of the food chain, and it eventually feeds everything in the ocean. Everything. Including corals. Also, it makes all the oxygen on the earth (and in the water too, of course). Phytoplankton can do this because it grows from the surface of the ocean down to about 300 feet, and it grows in every ocean, lake, stream, river and puddle on the earth. It's 90 percent of all life in the ocean (besides bacteria); The remaining 10 percent is everything else: Whales, corals, fish, crabs, zooplankton, etc."
"In the ocean, phytoplankton grows and gets eaten mostly by zooplankton; and of the zooplankton, copepods are the most abundant animals in the ocean. About 90 percent of all pods in the ocean are copepods. And of course the copepods, along with other zooplankton, are food for most of the corals that reefers want to keep in their tanks. But how does this fix the water quality?"
"Well, among a few other things, phytoplankton uses two very important things to grow: nitrate and phosphate. So while phytoplankton is producing food IN the water, it's also using (reducing) nitrate and phosphate FROM the water. How convenient! It is exactly what is needed. Matter of fact, since phytoplankton covers the top 300 feet of depth of the ocean (which is where all the sunlight is), this 300 feet happens to also be the lowest-nitrate and lowest-phosphate area of the ocean (see attached graph). So, we thought of a not-so-scientific term to help reefers understand this process: Primary Reduction. Primary Reduction occurs when phytoplankton reduces the amount of nitrate and phosphate in the ocean, while making (producing) food for the ocean. In case you can't see the graph, here are typical nitrate and phosphate measurements from the ocean; as you can see, there is almost no nitrate or phosphate in the top 300 feet of water, because the phytoplankton there eats it all:"
Depth (meters)......Phytoplankton Amount (ugC/l)..........NO2+NO3+NH4 (uM)
10.......................10....................................Almost zero
20.......................11....................................Almost zero
30.......................12....................................Almost zero
40.......................12....................................Almost zero
50.......................13....................................Almost zero
60.......................13....................................Almost zero
70.......................15....................................Almost zero
80.......................15....................................1
90.......................13....................................4
100.......................12...................................9
110.......................5....................................10
120.......................4....................................11
130.......................3....................................11.5
140.......................1....................................11.7
150.......................0.5..................................11.9
160.......................0....................................12
"Primary Reduction is the main process by which the ocean and the reefs remove nitrate and phosphate from the water. It's really the same thing as Primary Production, it's just looking at it from a different viewpoint. "Production" is what is made; "Reduction" is what is removed. It's kind of like when you make a sandwich: You "produce" a sandwich, but you "reduce" the amount of bread remaining in the house. Scientific studies use the term Primary Production to mean both production and reduction, because it's understood (it's one of the first things you learn in ocean science) that phytoplankton uses lots of nitrate and phosphate to grow. Reefers, however, don't all know this yet, so we hope the term Primary Reduction helps in the understanding."
"Continuing with the sandwiches: If your goal were to "reduce" the amount of bread in your house as much as possible, you'd want to "produce" as many sandwiches as possible, even if you had to give the sandwiches away to other people. This way, at least your "excess bread problem" would be gone. You of course would eat a few sandwiches, so you'd have energy to keep on "producing more sandwiches" and "reducing more bread". And as long as you did this, you could keep the bread-reduction process going forever. You might call this a "sandwich cycle", and indeed it's very similar to how it's done in the ocean, except there it's called the Nutrient Cycle."
"The Nutrient Cycle (also called a Carbon Cycle) is how the ocean gets rid of all the nitrate and phosphate that builds up in the water (the attached color diagram shows how it looks). Primary Production uses the sun to grow phytoplankton, which makes food to feed the copepods and then the larger animals. The waste from these animals makes nitrate and phosphate, which then gets removed from the water by the phytoplankton's Primary Reduction. But Primary Reduction is really the same thing as Primary Production. So you repeat. The only "outside" thing needed to keep the Nutrient Cycle going is light. In case you can't see the diagram, it works like this:"
"phytoplankton -> zooplankton -> fish+corals -> nitrate+phosphate -> phytoplankton"
"The Nutrient Cycle is not the same as the Nitrogen Cycle; the Nitrogen Cycle is just one specific part of the whole Nutrient Cycle. If you only complete the Nitrogen Cycle, but don't complete the whole Nutrient Cycle, then nitrate and phosphate will build up and cause problems, such as the nutrient problems that many reefers have in their tanks."
"In the ocean, the Nutrient Cycle is a tight circular cycle like the attached picture shows. This is true especially on reefs, where a large part of the nutrients stay "on the reef" and do not flow out into the ocean; the nutrients are just recycled in the Nutrient Cycle. This make reefs one of the most efficient users of energy on earth, because all the nutrients stay on the reef, and it also explains Darwin's Paradox: How can so much life exist on a reef, when there are so little nutrients there."
"(Note: Depending on the area of science that you read, primary production is also described as nitrogen fixing, carbon fixing, CO2 fixing, and photosynthesis.)"
"Videos we like:
Phytoplankton sampling in the Antarctic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V6kvCXLf8Q
UK phyto sampling:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmQeXMNXxEo
And the video which ties everything together:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPOYJIt0pbc "
Link:
http://www.reefbase.org/download/download.aspx?type=10&docid=A0000001891_1 (needs free account)
"Reef aquarists hopefully now understand that they can greatly increase their coral growth by feeding plankton (and lots of it) to their tanks. And especially, by feeding the plankton slowly throughout the night (not all at once), which is when and how corals eat the most."
"But a problem arises in aquariums: Water quality. Anyone who has tried heavy coral feeding, or maybe any coral feeding at all, has seen their water quality go down quickly, because the uneaten food starts rotting and generating nitrates and phosphates. Not only do you have to stop the feeding, but the water quality then needs to be fixed so that the corals can at least get back to growing the way they were originally (bad water quality can slow down or stop coral growth). This is not a problem in the ocean, because even with the gigantic amounts of food that is fed to the corals, the ocean has its own nitrate and phosphate filters, and it does the filtering quite quickly. So what can you do?"
"Copy the ocean, that's what. This means copy the ocean exactly, they way it processes its own water quality. It's easy, and you might already be doing it; or maybe you just need to do it more. It starts by understanding the most important process in the ocean: Primary Production."
"Primary Production is one of the most commonly used terms in ocean science, and it occurs when phytoplankton grows in sunlight. It is called "primary" because it's the "first step" or the "bottom" of the food chain, and it eventually feeds everything in the ocean. Everything. Including corals. Also, it makes all the oxygen on the earth (and in the water too, of course). Phytoplankton can do this because it grows from the surface of the ocean down to about 300 feet, and it grows in every ocean, lake, stream, river and puddle on the earth. It's 90 percent of all life in the ocean (besides bacteria); The remaining 10 percent is everything else: Whales, corals, fish, crabs, zooplankton, etc."
"In the ocean, phytoplankton grows and gets eaten mostly by zooplankton; and of the zooplankton, copepods are the most abundant animals in the ocean. About 90 percent of all pods in the ocean are copepods. And of course the copepods, along with other zooplankton, are food for most of the corals that reefers want to keep in their tanks. But how does this fix the water quality?"
"Well, among a few other things, phytoplankton uses two very important things to grow: nitrate and phosphate. So while phytoplankton is producing food IN the water, it's also using (reducing) nitrate and phosphate FROM the water. How convenient! It is exactly what is needed. Matter of fact, since phytoplankton covers the top 300 feet of depth of the ocean (which is where all the sunlight is), this 300 feet happens to also be the lowest-nitrate and lowest-phosphate area of the ocean (see attached graph). So, we thought of a not-so-scientific term to help reefers understand this process: Primary Reduction. Primary Reduction occurs when phytoplankton reduces the amount of nitrate and phosphate in the ocean, while making (producing) food for the ocean. In case you can't see the graph, here are typical nitrate and phosphate measurements from the ocean; as you can see, there is almost no nitrate or phosphate in the top 300 feet of water, because the phytoplankton there eats it all:"
Depth (meters)......Phytoplankton Amount (ugC/l)..........NO2+NO3+NH4 (uM)
10.......................10....................................Almost zero
20.......................11....................................Almost zero
30.......................12....................................Almost zero
40.......................12....................................Almost zero
50.......................13....................................Almost zero
60.......................13....................................Almost zero
70.......................15....................................Almost zero
80.......................15....................................1
90.......................13....................................4
100.......................12...................................9
110.......................5....................................10
120.......................4....................................11
130.......................3....................................11.5
140.......................1....................................11.7
150.......................0.5..................................11.9
160.......................0....................................12
"Primary Reduction is the main process by which the ocean and the reefs remove nitrate and phosphate from the water. It's really the same thing as Primary Production, it's just looking at it from a different viewpoint. "Production" is what is made; "Reduction" is what is removed. It's kind of like when you make a sandwich: You "produce" a sandwich, but you "reduce" the amount of bread remaining in the house. Scientific studies use the term Primary Production to mean both production and reduction, because it's understood (it's one of the first things you learn in ocean science) that phytoplankton uses lots of nitrate and phosphate to grow. Reefers, however, don't all know this yet, so we hope the term Primary Reduction helps in the understanding."
"Continuing with the sandwiches: If your goal were to "reduce" the amount of bread in your house as much as possible, you'd want to "produce" as many sandwiches as possible, even if you had to give the sandwiches away to other people. This way, at least your "excess bread problem" would be gone. You of course would eat a few sandwiches, so you'd have energy to keep on "producing more sandwiches" and "reducing more bread". And as long as you did this, you could keep the bread-reduction process going forever. You might call this a "sandwich cycle", and indeed it's very similar to how it's done in the ocean, except there it's called the Nutrient Cycle."
"The Nutrient Cycle (also called a Carbon Cycle) is how the ocean gets rid of all the nitrate and phosphate that builds up in the water (the attached color diagram shows how it looks). Primary Production uses the sun to grow phytoplankton, which makes food to feed the copepods and then the larger animals. The waste from these animals makes nitrate and phosphate, which then gets removed from the water by the phytoplankton's Primary Reduction. But Primary Reduction is really the same thing as Primary Production. So you repeat. The only "outside" thing needed to keep the Nutrient Cycle going is light. In case you can't see the diagram, it works like this:"
"phytoplankton -> zooplankton -> fish+corals -> nitrate+phosphate -> phytoplankton"
"The Nutrient Cycle is not the same as the Nitrogen Cycle; the Nitrogen Cycle is just one specific part of the whole Nutrient Cycle. If you only complete the Nitrogen Cycle, but don't complete the whole Nutrient Cycle, then nitrate and phosphate will build up and cause problems, such as the nutrient problems that many reefers have in their tanks."
"In the ocean, the Nutrient Cycle is a tight circular cycle like the attached picture shows. This is true especially on reefs, where a large part of the nutrients stay "on the reef" and do not flow out into the ocean; the nutrients are just recycled in the Nutrient Cycle. This make reefs one of the most efficient users of energy on earth, because all the nutrients stay on the reef, and it also explains Darwin's Paradox: How can so much life exist on a reef, when there are so little nutrients there."
"(Note: Depending on the area of science that you read, primary production is also described as nitrogen fixing, carbon fixing, CO2 fixing, and photosynthesis.)"
"Videos we like:
Phytoplankton sampling in the Antarctic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5V6kvCXLf8Q
UK phyto sampling:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmQeXMNXxEo
And the video which ties everything together:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPOYJIt0pbc "
Link:
http://www.reefbase.org/download/download.aspx?type=10&docid=A0000001891_1 (needs free account)
Attachments
"Importance of a Micro-Diet for Scleractinian Corals. Marine Ecology Progress Series, Nov 2004"
"This study investigated the ability of 3 coral species -- zooxanthellate (Stylophora pistillata and Galaxea fascicularis) and azooxanthellate (Tubastrea aurea) -- to feed on pico and nanoplankton (particles less than 100 µm). Coral [frags] were incubated for 6 hours in flow chambers containing the planktonic particles (experimental chambers). Control chambers were also set up to follow the natural changes in the planktonic community. Changes in the concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), bacteria, cyanobacteria and flagellates were monitored during the incubation. Results showed that ingestion rates were proportional to prey [food] concentrations."
"Several studies have shown that an input of particulate food induces significant changes in most of the physiological parameters of scleractinian corals. Photosynthetic rates, as well as tissue and skeletal growth rates, are highly enhanced in fed (compared to starved) corals."
"Microbial communities [floating bacteria, cyanobacteria, flagellates and ciliates] play a key role in marine food webs since they are the main contributors to pelagic [water column] planktonic communities in terms of biomass and production. In reef waters, concentrations may be as high as 1,000,000 bacteria/ml, 10,000 to 100,000 cyanobacteria/ml, and up to 10,000 total flagellates."
"DOC has also to be taken into account as a potential food source for corals; it constitutes the vast majority of the organic carbon pool in the oceans, and was shown to be a significant food source for several aquatic metazoans, including corals."
"In terms of number of prey ingested, normalized either to the protein content or the number of polyps, bacteria were quantitatively the major group, followed by cyanobacteria and heterotrophic flagellates. The proportion of each type of prey ingested was comparable for all coral species."
"When converted into amounts of carbon and nitrogen ingested per polyp or per protein, nanoflagellates (both auto and heterotrophic) represented the most important contribution, i.e. 84 to 94 percent of the total carbon input, and 52 to 85 percent of the total nitrogen. Bacteria, cyanobacteria and picoflagellates contributed only 1 to 7 percent of the total ingested amounts of carbon and nitrogen."
"Nanoflagellates (both auto and heterotrophic) seem to be a major food source for the 3 corals studied, in terms of carbon and nitrogen content. In this experiment, they represent 84 to 94 percent of the total ingested carbon, and 52 to 85 percent of the total ingested nitrogen, and therefore appear to be a most important group in the 'micro-diet' of the corals."
"This study represents a first estimate of the contribution of pico and nanoplankton to the nutrient budget of corals. Our results indicate that at least nanoplankton may be a major food source for scleractinian corals, which is abundant and constantly available in the waters surrounding every coral colony. Corals are, therefore, able to feed on a wide and heterogeneous diet."
"Videos we like:
Plankton net in Alaska bay:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3T97LFA3rg
Zooplankton and Primary Productivity:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtZ75KW2t-U
And this one puts it all together; when he says "fish", think "corals":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQaE0e0iD3s "
Link:
http://www.int-res.com/articles/meps2004/282/m282p151.pdf
"This study investigated the ability of 3 coral species -- zooxanthellate (Stylophora pistillata and Galaxea fascicularis) and azooxanthellate (Tubastrea aurea) -- to feed on pico and nanoplankton (particles less than 100 µm). Coral [frags] were incubated for 6 hours in flow chambers containing the planktonic particles (experimental chambers). Control chambers were also set up to follow the natural changes in the planktonic community. Changes in the concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), bacteria, cyanobacteria and flagellates were monitored during the incubation. Results showed that ingestion rates were proportional to prey [food] concentrations."
"Several studies have shown that an input of particulate food induces significant changes in most of the physiological parameters of scleractinian corals. Photosynthetic rates, as well as tissue and skeletal growth rates, are highly enhanced in fed (compared to starved) corals."
"Microbial communities [floating bacteria, cyanobacteria, flagellates and ciliates] play a key role in marine food webs since they are the main contributors to pelagic [water column] planktonic communities in terms of biomass and production. In reef waters, concentrations may be as high as 1,000,000 bacteria/ml, 10,000 to 100,000 cyanobacteria/ml, and up to 10,000 total flagellates."
"DOC has also to be taken into account as a potential food source for corals; it constitutes the vast majority of the organic carbon pool in the oceans, and was shown to be a significant food source for several aquatic metazoans, including corals."
"In terms of number of prey ingested, normalized either to the protein content or the number of polyps, bacteria were quantitatively the major group, followed by cyanobacteria and heterotrophic flagellates. The proportion of each type of prey ingested was comparable for all coral species."
"When converted into amounts of carbon and nitrogen ingested per polyp or per protein, nanoflagellates (both auto and heterotrophic) represented the most important contribution, i.e. 84 to 94 percent of the total carbon input, and 52 to 85 percent of the total nitrogen. Bacteria, cyanobacteria and picoflagellates contributed only 1 to 7 percent of the total ingested amounts of carbon and nitrogen."
"Nanoflagellates (both auto and heterotrophic) seem to be a major food source for the 3 corals studied, in terms of carbon and nitrogen content. In this experiment, they represent 84 to 94 percent of the total ingested carbon, and 52 to 85 percent of the total ingested nitrogen, and therefore appear to be a most important group in the 'micro-diet' of the corals."
"This study represents a first estimate of the contribution of pico and nanoplankton to the nutrient budget of corals. Our results indicate that at least nanoplankton may be a major food source for scleractinian corals, which is abundant and constantly available in the waters surrounding every coral colony. Corals are, therefore, able to feed on a wide and heterogeneous diet."
"Videos we like:
Plankton net in Alaska bay:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3T97LFA3rg
Zooplankton and Primary Productivity:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtZ75KW2t-U
And this one puts it all together; when he says "fish", think "corals":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQaE0e0iD3s "
Link:
http://www.int-res.com/articles/meps2004/282/m282p151.pdf
Attachments
"A preliminary quantitative study on emergence of reef-associated zooplankton from a Philippines coral reef. Proceedings of the 4th International Coral Reef Symposium, 1981"
"This paper attempts to investigate the [daily] patterns of [zooplankton] emergence based on size, density and composition, for the zooplankton collected over a coral reef."
"Zooplankton were collected at Padre Burgos, Quezon, from January 7 to 10, 1981, during new moon. Minimal cloud cover was recorded over the collection period, except for inclement weather on the fourth day. Sunrise and sunset defined the 12 hour day-night periods. Four 1-square-meter [zooplankton] traps were tethered above an extensive coral reef patch. Currents were negligible at the sampling depth of approximately 3 meters at low tide. [...] The corals consisted mainly of branching Porites, Acropora, and Cyphastrea in decreasing order of dominance."
"We use the term "Reef Associated Zooplankton" to include those plankton that reside in, or are found in, close proximity to the reef, whether they be holoplankton, meroplankton, swarmers, demersal or benthic forms, at various times throughout the [daily] cycle, and which may contribute energy to the tropic [feeding] structure of the reef."
"Reef zooplankton were collected at Quezon, Philippines for 3 day-night periods using emergence traps over branching coral patch reefs [of branching Porites, Acropora, and Cyphastrea]. Emergence [of the pods from where they hide between the corals] was continuous over 24 hours, with a peak at 5pm to 7pm. Larval forms account for about 25 percent of all zooplankton. A mean of 53,731 reef-associated zooplankton per square meter were collected at night (6pm to 6am), while 44 percent emerged during the day. [...] Cyclopoid copepods dominated all sampling periods, followed by calanoid and harpacticoid copepods, with a taxonomically diverse assemblage present. Results indicate that zooplankton abundance is higher than reported previously."
"Table 2 [simplified]
Pod Size...................0.50 mm........0.20 mm........0.08 mm
Time
----------------------------------------------------------
6pm to Midnight.........5,703............16,121.........10,793
Midnight to 6am.........2,437............13,271...........5,406
6am to 6pm.................420............25,854..........18,584
----------------------------------------------------------
Total Pods, per size:...8,560............55,246..........34,783
Total All Pods, per 24 hours, per square meter:.......98,589 "
"The 0.20 mm [sizes] dominated all samples for all time periods, both in numbers and percent for the 3-day data. The observed presence of copepod swarms [...] was a contributing factor, accounting for the high numbers recorded for this size class [...]. At late night, 13,272 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter) of this size emerged, with 20,250 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter) rising into the water column during the 7am to 5pm hours. In addition, the 0.20 mm [sizes] accounted for at least 50 percent of all zooplankton throughout every sampling period, except at 6pm to 8pm, when slightly fewer animals were caught. The 0.08 mm [size] was the next most prominent size class present at all times. Peak rates of emergence occurred before sunset, with the lowest rate at late night contributing only 26 percent of that [size], while daytime (7am to 5pm) emergence prevail at a density of 13,690 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter). The 0.50 mm [sizes] consistently contributed the least in number to the total sample, with a maximum value of 1,292 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter per hour) emerging at 7pm to 8pm. This low contribution should not be mistaken to mean insignificance of this size class. If biomass studies had been conducted, this size would probably have yielded the highest values, due to their large size."
"Our results indicate that most reef plankton are not large; in fact, the opposite is seen, with the [0.20 mm and 0.08 mm sizes] dominating all samples at all time periods. The presence of swarms [of copepods] in the [0.20 mm size] indicates that these organisms can come up from within the reef substrate. [...] This may be advantageous to the corals and other members of the reef community that are able to capture and ingest these small plankton during the night or day, thereby availing themselves to an abundant food supply. Moreover, studies have shown that smaller-sized [pods] play a more vital role in nutrient regeneration than larger [pods], because of a more rapid release or recycling of metabolites, vitamins, and essential amino acids. Thus, the [feeding] role of reef plankton may not be confined to just providing raw food to [fish and corals], but may involve micronutrients, particulate organic matter, and detritus [waste] production, which increases their importance to the reef communities and surrounding waters."
"Video: Scripps Institute / Birch Aquarium presentation on the emergence (migration) of zooplankton at night; although this is about the open ocean, the same activity occurs on reefs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zwiWOfwtqM "
Link:
http://www.reefbase.org/download/download.aspx?type=1&docid=9304
"This paper attempts to investigate the [daily] patterns of [zooplankton] emergence based on size, density and composition, for the zooplankton collected over a coral reef."
"Zooplankton were collected at Padre Burgos, Quezon, from January 7 to 10, 1981, during new moon. Minimal cloud cover was recorded over the collection period, except for inclement weather on the fourth day. Sunrise and sunset defined the 12 hour day-night periods. Four 1-square-meter [zooplankton] traps were tethered above an extensive coral reef patch. Currents were negligible at the sampling depth of approximately 3 meters at low tide. [...] The corals consisted mainly of branching Porites, Acropora, and Cyphastrea in decreasing order of dominance."
"We use the term "Reef Associated Zooplankton" to include those plankton that reside in, or are found in, close proximity to the reef, whether they be holoplankton, meroplankton, swarmers, demersal or benthic forms, at various times throughout the [daily] cycle, and which may contribute energy to the tropic [feeding] structure of the reef."
"Reef zooplankton were collected at Quezon, Philippines for 3 day-night periods using emergence traps over branching coral patch reefs [of branching Porites, Acropora, and Cyphastrea]. Emergence [of the pods from where they hide between the corals] was continuous over 24 hours, with a peak at 5pm to 7pm. Larval forms account for about 25 percent of all zooplankton. A mean of 53,731 reef-associated zooplankton per square meter were collected at night (6pm to 6am), while 44 percent emerged during the day. [...] Cyclopoid copepods dominated all sampling periods, followed by calanoid and harpacticoid copepods, with a taxonomically diverse assemblage present. Results indicate that zooplankton abundance is higher than reported previously."
"Table 2 [simplified]
Pod Size...................0.50 mm........0.20 mm........0.08 mm
Time
----------------------------------------------------------
6pm to Midnight.........5,703............16,121.........10,793
Midnight to 6am.........2,437............13,271...........5,406
6am to 6pm.................420............25,854..........18,584
----------------------------------------------------------
Total Pods, per size:...8,560............55,246..........34,783
Total All Pods, per 24 hours, per square meter:.......98,589 "
"The 0.20 mm [sizes] dominated all samples for all time periods, both in numbers and percent for the 3-day data. The observed presence of copepod swarms [...] was a contributing factor, accounting for the high numbers recorded for this size class [...]. At late night, 13,272 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter) of this size emerged, with 20,250 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter) rising into the water column during the 7am to 5pm hours. In addition, the 0.20 mm [sizes] accounted for at least 50 percent of all zooplankton throughout every sampling period, except at 6pm to 8pm, when slightly fewer animals were caught. The 0.08 mm [size] was the next most prominent size class present at all times. Peak rates of emergence occurred before sunset, with the lowest rate at late night contributing only 26 percent of that [size], while daytime (7am to 5pm) emergence prevail at a density of 13,690 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter). The 0.50 mm [sizes] consistently contributed the least in number to the total sample, with a maximum value of 1,292 reef-associated-zooplankton (per square meter per hour) emerging at 7pm to 8pm. This low contribution should not be mistaken to mean insignificance of this size class. If biomass studies had been conducted, this size would probably have yielded the highest values, due to their large size."
"Our results indicate that most reef plankton are not large; in fact, the opposite is seen, with the [0.20 mm and 0.08 mm sizes] dominating all samples at all time periods. The presence of swarms [of copepods] in the [0.20 mm size] indicates that these organisms can come up from within the reef substrate. [...] This may be advantageous to the corals and other members of the reef community that are able to capture and ingest these small plankton during the night or day, thereby availing themselves to an abundant food supply. Moreover, studies have shown that smaller-sized [pods] play a more vital role in nutrient regeneration than larger [pods], because of a more rapid release or recycling of metabolites, vitamins, and essential amino acids. Thus, the [feeding] role of reef plankton may not be confined to just providing raw food to [fish and corals], but may involve micronutrients, particulate organic matter, and detritus [waste] production, which increases their importance to the reef communities and surrounding waters."
"Video: Scripps Institute / Birch Aquarium presentation on the emergence (migration) of zooplankton at night; although this is about the open ocean, the same activity occurs on reefs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zwiWOfwtqM "
Link:
http://www.reefbase.org/download/download.aspx?type=1&docid=9304
Attachments
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
I don't want anyone to infer that the only thing that my corals eat are shrimp larvae. Corals (and fishes and anemones) in my reef aquarium get a large variety of foods.
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
one Lysmata makes no offspring- it requires a pair
MMathews
New member
tank feedings
tank feedings
Great thread guys!
I was wondering what type of feeding would be best for LPS corals and an anenome. I saw that capt hylinur recommends sweetwater zooplankton.
Would the sweetwater zooplankton and fresh brine shrimp (from my hatchery) suffice as enough food for the anenome and 3-4 pieces of LPS?
I have a 75g w/ 6x54w t5's.
Also- would this set-up allow for any SPS coral (only around the top) or possibly a clam? And would adding either of these change what I'd be feeding? Would the sweetwater plankton and brine still be enough?
Thanks so much for the help, you guys are great!
-Mike
tank feedings
Great thread guys!
I was wondering what type of feeding would be best for LPS corals and an anenome. I saw that capt hylinur recommends sweetwater zooplankton.
Would the sweetwater zooplankton and fresh brine shrimp (from my hatchery) suffice as enough food for the anenome and 3-4 pieces of LPS?
I have a 75g w/ 6x54w t5's.
Also- would this set-up allow for any SPS coral (only around the top) or possibly a clam? And would adding either of these change what I'd be feeding? Would the sweetwater plankton and brine still be enough?
Thanks so much for the help, you guys are great!
-Mike
"Functional aspects of nutrient cycling on coral reefs. The Ecology of Deep and Shallow Coral Reefs, Symposia Series for Undersea Research, 1983"
"It generally is believed that the main evolutionary adaptation to low nutrient conditions in reef environments has been the evolution of relationships that lead to efficient recycling of nutrients. The foremost example of this type of relationship is the [relationship] between algae and invertebrates. Present day coral reefs are physically dominated by a variety of orders and classes of [scleractinian corals], and virtually all of them have symbiotic dinoflagellates (zooxanthellae) [algae] in their tissues. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that these [corals] do not excrete waste products as do other nonsymbiotic animals, and that there is even a measurable uptake of dissolved nutrients by them attributable to the presence of the algae. Other invertebrate groups, including sponges, molluscs and ascidians, also have some species with algal symbionts. This form of recycling is the most efficient possible (often 100%), as the nutrients are available to the algae in concentrated form. It should cost the algae much less energy to take up the nutrients they need from a concentrated source, than to take them up once they have been excreted and diluted."
"In order for the reef as a whole to be efficient in recycling nutrients, there must be mechanisms for recycling nutrients among these free-living plants and animals. The main problem [in proving that recycling occurs] arises when one considers that the same high water flow over the reef that assures a large source of low-nutrient oceanic water also assures that any nutrients excreted into the water by animals will be rapidly diluted and carried away [because, this would dis-prove recycling]. Therefore, what is needed [in order to prove recycling] is a mechanism to prevent dilution and loss [into the open ocean]. I would like to bring attention here to a little studied mechanism, that of particle entrapment and nutrient regeneration within the reef framework."
"Coral reefs are riddled with holes and tunnels of all sizes. From 50 to 75 percent of the reef volume can be made up of these voids. These holes contain varying amounts of sediment which comes from a variety of sources, including carbonate sediments (generated by degradation of the reef structure by borers), fecal material from fishes and invertebrates (that use these holes as shelters, or encrust the walls of the holes), and nonreef material (including terrestrial and pelagic) that is trapped inside the reef as seawater percolates through the porous structure. Organic materials in these sediments are metabolized [eaten] by microorganisms, and in the process, nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] are regenerated. Elevated concentrations of nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] have been measured in waters from these reef cavities."
"Reef water is 3 to 4 times higher in NO3 [nitrate] and slightly higher in NH4 [ammonia] and organic Nitrogen [food] concentrations than oceanic waters. The most dramatic difference in nutrient concentration, however, can be seen between the offshore water and the cave water. Cave water concentrations are 13 times higher in NO3, 2 times higher in NH4, and 3 times higher in organic Nitrogen than offshore waters. These enrichments in the caves represent a significant increase in nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] for any primary producers [algae] that might have access to them [the algae would 'eat' or 'reduce' the nutrients, which is what we call 'primary reduction']"
"New nutrients enter the system in both dissolved and particulate form, or are generated [in-place] by N2 fixation. Dissolved nutrients, and some particulates, are taken up by the organisms [but mostly by] algae and zooxanthellae. Other particulates are trapped by the reef framework, and by filter-feeding organisms. Planktivorous fish [who eat floating particles] have been shown to excrete and defecate significant amounts of NH4 and organic material in their nocturnal shelters. Herbivores graze on the algae and corals, and then the carnivores, in turn, feed on the herbivores. The fecal material from both of these groups, many of which spend about one-half of their time sheltering in reef crevices, are deposited either into reef crevices or released just above the reef surface where it rains on to what can be viewed as a benthic wall-to-wall carpet of mouths. [Thus the nutrient recycling process is complete, without have to exchange water with the open ocean]"
"Here are great videos that we've seen which explain the natural filters of the ocean (the primary producers, i.e., "primary reducers")...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d96F0ak4uY
Biology of algae, part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5pv1xYK6Wo
Biology of algae, part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCkWf5Xiyvc "
Link:
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/CREWS/SaltRiver/salt_river22.pdf
"It generally is believed that the main evolutionary adaptation to low nutrient conditions in reef environments has been the evolution of relationships that lead to efficient recycling of nutrients. The foremost example of this type of relationship is the [relationship] between algae and invertebrates. Present day coral reefs are physically dominated by a variety of orders and classes of [scleractinian corals], and virtually all of them have symbiotic dinoflagellates (zooxanthellae) [algae] in their tissues. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that these [corals] do not excrete waste products as do other nonsymbiotic animals, and that there is even a measurable uptake of dissolved nutrients by them attributable to the presence of the algae. Other invertebrate groups, including sponges, molluscs and ascidians, also have some species with algal symbionts. This form of recycling is the most efficient possible (often 100%), as the nutrients are available to the algae in concentrated form. It should cost the algae much less energy to take up the nutrients they need from a concentrated source, than to take them up once they have been excreted and diluted."
"In order for the reef as a whole to be efficient in recycling nutrients, there must be mechanisms for recycling nutrients among these free-living plants and animals. The main problem [in proving that recycling occurs] arises when one considers that the same high water flow over the reef that assures a large source of low-nutrient oceanic water also assures that any nutrients excreted into the water by animals will be rapidly diluted and carried away [because, this would dis-prove recycling]. Therefore, what is needed [in order to prove recycling] is a mechanism to prevent dilution and loss [into the open ocean]. I would like to bring attention here to a little studied mechanism, that of particle entrapment and nutrient regeneration within the reef framework."
"Coral reefs are riddled with holes and tunnels of all sizes. From 50 to 75 percent of the reef volume can be made up of these voids. These holes contain varying amounts of sediment which comes from a variety of sources, including carbonate sediments (generated by degradation of the reef structure by borers), fecal material from fishes and invertebrates (that use these holes as shelters, or encrust the walls of the holes), and nonreef material (including terrestrial and pelagic) that is trapped inside the reef as seawater percolates through the porous structure. Organic materials in these sediments are metabolized [eaten] by microorganisms, and in the process, nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] are regenerated. Elevated concentrations of nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] have been measured in waters from these reef cavities."
"Reef water is 3 to 4 times higher in NO3 [nitrate] and slightly higher in NH4 [ammonia] and organic Nitrogen [food] concentrations than oceanic waters. The most dramatic difference in nutrient concentration, however, can be seen between the offshore water and the cave water. Cave water concentrations are 13 times higher in NO3, 2 times higher in NH4, and 3 times higher in organic Nitrogen than offshore waters. These enrichments in the caves represent a significant increase in nutrients [nitrate and phosphate] for any primary producers [algae] that might have access to them [the algae would 'eat' or 'reduce' the nutrients, which is what we call 'primary reduction']"
"New nutrients enter the system in both dissolved and particulate form, or are generated [in-place] by N2 fixation. Dissolved nutrients, and some particulates, are taken up by the organisms [but mostly by] algae and zooxanthellae. Other particulates are trapped by the reef framework, and by filter-feeding organisms. Planktivorous fish [who eat floating particles] have been shown to excrete and defecate significant amounts of NH4 and organic material in their nocturnal shelters. Herbivores graze on the algae and corals, and then the carnivores, in turn, feed on the herbivores. The fecal material from both of these groups, many of which spend about one-half of their time sheltering in reef crevices, are deposited either into reef crevices or released just above the reef surface where it rains on to what can be viewed as a benthic wall-to-wall carpet of mouths. [Thus the nutrient recycling process is complete, without have to exchange water with the open ocean]"
"Here are great videos that we've seen which explain the natural filters of the ocean (the primary producers, i.e., "primary reducers")...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7d96F0ak4uY
Biology of algae, part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5pv1xYK6Wo
Biology of algae, part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCkWf5Xiyvc "
Link:
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/general/lib/CREWS/SaltRiver/salt_river22.pdf
Aquarist007
New member
An anemone really doesn't need to be feed that often. I feed mine a small piece of a silver side minnow which I place close enough that the tentacles can grab it. I may feed once every two weeks or so.
I feed the frozen cylopeeze to the lps corals about once a week.
I don't think I recommended sweetwater plankton as I don't even know what it is:fun2:
fishoutawater
New member
So proper dosing of phytoplankton will in fact reduce n and p?
jlinzmaier
Premium Member
How so?? I'm not following you. Animals taking in phytoplankton doesn't reduce N and P in any way that I'm aware of. When dosing phyto, it's inevitable that some will get wasted and decompose thus contributing to the total DOC's including N and P.
Jeremy
Greenmaster
New member
If your tank can grow the phytoplankton, as it grows it absorbs the N and P.... but dead phyto will decay and add to the load... another note is that as the phyto grows it absorbs the N and P but when the fish eat it, some of the N and P is released back into the water and some is used to make the fish larger.
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