Some macro algae IDs please

[Timbor]

Hi there, I have a couple types of macro algae that need to be identified. The first is this nice orange one that sprung up out of a rock. It has stayed put, but just got larger over time:

The second has been a real pain. It will grow anywhere - on sand, rocks, or even corals, and grows and spreads fast via very thin runners. They spring up as small individual leaves, with their roots/runners embedded in the sand or rocks. An ID would be appreciated, along with suggestions as to what might eat them:

The leaves seem pretty soft and succulent, so I imagine there would be a herbivore out there for it - I just need one that is suitable for a 35 gallon tank.

Thanks,

Tim

 

[dzeadow]

i don't know what the macro algaes are, but it looks like you have a bigger problem w/ planaria (red flatworms) in there, they appear in the 1st and 3rd photos, in the 3rd on the leaves of the macro. Unless those red spots are something else?

 

[Toddrtrex]

I actually like the first one, looks pretty neat.

As for the other pictures, I don't know the name of them, but had it in my tank for a while. I used to do some manual removal of them, but that was a pain. I gave up on trying to remove it, and decided to live with it. And now (( about 6 months after I stopped worrying about it )) I don't have any of it in my tank. I don't have anything that could have eaten it, it just seemed to die back on its own.

 

[rendogg]

Sorry, can't help with ID's but, it's pretty cool the types of algae that can grow in the absence/limited quantity of effective herbivores. The main problem with letting the algae grow before adding herbivores is that the algae can get too big or too widespread to be able to control. You are limited by space so you cannot add a larger herbivorous fish that will take down the big stuff. Most herbivores that you would add to eat macro algae will likely eat the one you like first... sorry, but probably true. I would probably try a long spine urchin(remove after it's done it's job) to take it all down and then add some Trochus, Spiny Astreas, Mexican Turbos, Ceriths, and maybe a couple other types for good measure to keep it clean after. Or, you could have a beautiful macro algae tank.... probably not what you want though.

 

[Timbor]

I figured that any herbivore would eat the orange stuff - I can always move it to the fuge.

I'm not too worried about the flatworms at the moment. They have been in there pretty much since the start of the tank, and they don't seem to pose any problem other than being a bit unsightly, which I can live with.

I am hoping that the green stuff will die back on its own. I was thinking of trying a blenny, but I think they are more for micro algae - perhaps a sea hare or something for a short while.

I just upgraded my skimmer (from a coralife 65 to an octo extreme 160 - big change!) and will be starting GFO in the near future, so hopefully that will help to curb it. It would be nice to have an ID though and to know what might eat it.

 

[Timbor]

Anyone else wanna take a stab at the IDs?

 

[dzeadow]

is the stuff in pic 2 the same as pic 3? pic 2 almost looks like oar grass or simlilar, not sure if it grows on rock though, wouldn't hurt to ask John over at reefcleaners.org he's got books about the stuff.

http://reefcleaners.org/index.php?p...facturer_id=0&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=34

 

[Timbor]

Yeah, it is the same stuff. It came in on some indo liverock when I set the tank up in Nov 2007. I don't think it's the oar grass though - at least not stuff that came from florida. The ones in my tank tend to have a more irregular shape to them than the ones in your pic.

It does seem to grow faster through the sand, although I have a few rocks where it really took hold - mostly rocks that had initially been dry/dead.

Interestingly enough, a good portion of the crop of this algae in my tank seems to have gone sexual on me since last night sometime. The tank was all cloudy this morning, so I made the skimmer skim more wet and it pulled out a bunch of green crud from the water, while the macros in question seem to have died. I would have to say that my new skimmer did a great job in cleaning up the water. I bet the macros will spread some more, but it's not like they haven't already reached most of the corners of the tank...

 

[luther1200]

I don't know what they are but that first 1 is very cool.

 

[Timbor]

Here are some pics of the process for those interested:

Last night, I noticed this change - I have seen it before, but only in a few of them at once

This is what they looked like today, after making the display all cloudy:

 

[luther1200]

I think this is the second 1
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/al...gae-Photos-Gallery/Caulerpa-sertularoides.htm

 

[Timbor]

hmm, I don't think its Caulerpa sertularioides - that one has the leaves connected by a thicker stalk-like runner, whereas the ones in my tank tend to exist as solitary leaves with thread-like roots/runners.

Also, the leaves aren't all segmented like that.

The mystery continues!

 

[luther1200]

There are 25 different species on that site. But that is the only 1 that came close.

 

[rhoptowit]

Rhipidosiphon sp.

u had it go sexual in ur tank.

maybe Rhipidosiphon juvensis

 

[luther1200]

It looks almost like there is 2 types in those pics. 1 with fan shaped leaves, and another with needle like leaves with white tips. Look at the second to last pic and you can see the fan shaped leaves have already gone sexual, and the needle shaped ones haven't. At least thats what it looks like to me. I could be wrong.

 

[luther1200]

Unless the needle shaped ones are sprouts and turn into fan shaped leaves.

 

[Timbor]

Bingo, I think that Rhipidosiphon sp. is the correct ID, from the pics I found on google. I know that it went sexual on me, I have seen it happen before, just on a smaller scale than today. I just need to find something to eat it...

Now, if we can ID the orange one now

 

[luther1200]

I would think an Ulva Sp. But that is just a guess.

 

[BetterMetalReef]

Might want to try and post the pics on the Macroalgae forum.

That first one I would say for sure is Ulva sp., my guess on the second is some Caulpera sp. form. The growth habit you describe and the pics of it going sexual match with numerous different Caulpera species, and there's a ton of them (with only a few documented well).

My .02.

 

[rhoptowit]

ill take a stab at the first one.......my guess is some kind of halymenia.