Any downside to Pods?

[tpirovol]

Any downsides to Pods?? Do they eat Coraline algae etc…??

Thanks T

 

[Spieg]

No, they will eat regular algae or phtoplankton. Can take some work to build a self sustaining population.

 

[AlgaeBarn]

Any downsides to Pods?? Do they eat Coraline algae etc…??

Thanks T

There isn't a downside and you can never have too many

 

[dmsc2fs]

Another downside is fish like to carry them around in their mouth.

 

[Mjl714]

Pods will eat nudibranch eggs, which is one possible negative.

 

[AlgaeBarn]

Another downside is fish like to carry them around in their mouth.

You're right! I missed that down side

 

[tpirovol]

How about Phyto??

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

My tank naturally makes pods and phyto..phytoplankton...lol
D

 

[AlgaeBarn]

How about Phyto??

If you dose too much phytoplankton you could have a bloom and essentially be growing phyto in your system. Your corals and filter feeders will love it, but you probably wouldn't be able to see them very well

 

[WheatToast]

Any downsides to Pods?? Do they eat Coraline algae etc…??

Thanks T

Most of the pods (Copepods, Amphipods, Isopods, Mysid shrimp, and Ostracods) in the hobby are beneficial (grazers, detritivores, scavengers, filter-feeders, serve as live food), and I have never heard reports of them consuming Coralline. However, there are several harmful/nasty pods; here are a few I know of (note that I do not have much experience with harmful pods though):

Copepods:
- Red and Black bugs (Parategastes and Tegastes) and Alteuthellopsis are notorious parasites of stony coral (like Acropora):

- Various Copepods parasitize fish; I have only seen these in captivity attached to a Soupfin shark (Galeorhinus galeus) at a public aquarium:

A poor Whale shark (Rhincodon typus), coated in parasitic copepods :

Ommatokoita elongata is a Copepod that blinds Pacific sleeper sharks (Somniosus pacificus) and Greenland sharks (Somniosus microcephalus), though the copepod’s bioluminescence may attract prey to the sharks:

- Sheldon J. Plankton is a Copepod and arch-nemesis of Mr. Krabs… oh wait a minute…

Amphipods:
- These are amongst the largest of the pods and may consume smaller pods (this is usually not too problematic, though). @ying yang has footage of an Amphipod hunting a harmless Munnid isopod:

here a ampripod of mine catching another pod never a dull moment in our tanks ,everything trying to eat everything or sting something or release toxins to defend itself ha ha

- There are some reports of Amphipods eating coral, but this is likely an indicator that said corals were already dying.

Isopods:
- Various isopods, like Cirolanid, Aegid, and Epicaridean isopods, parasitically attach themselves to a host; the first two can kill their hosts if they are left untreated:

- Cymothoa exigua, the Tongue-eating louse, is an isopod that detaches the tongue of its host and proceeds to serve as a replacement:

- Giant isopods (Bathynomus) and some Serolid isopods are the creatures of nightmares:

Mysid shrimp:
- Like Amphipods, these might eat other pods and even each other, though I have never seen them become particularly problematic.

Ostracods:
- Here is @Isopod80’s input:

There's so many different species, some with specific diets, that it's hard to judge care. Some can also be pests. They're very difficult to i.d. Mine seemed to target algae so you may not want them in a planted tank.

Most of the ones we find in the marine hobby seem to be harmless, though I have found their freshwater counterparts to be rather fond of thick algal growth, so I could see why they might want to gobble up some decorative macroalgae.

- This Deep-sea giant ostracod (Gigantocypris) has a death stare: