Are all copepods good for diatoms?

[elzibar]

Seen a lot online about copepods being great for breaking down diatoms if introduced early enough.

I'm keen to give it a go. But do all pods do the desired thing?

I'm in the UK and it looks like there are limited options for getting any pods here. Was considering these...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-Live-...-Feed-fits-through-the-letterbox/175374708616

Would they do the diatom thing?

Thanks.

 

[Cthulukelele]

I'll be honest most copepods will help, but the biggest thing that removes diatoms is time. They bloom right after a tank is set up and unless you have incredibly silicate rich water never really show up in appreciable quantities again

 

[Cthulukelele]

Some of my biggest pet peeve advice being given to new reefers by large "helpful" saltwater channels on YouTube and online articles is solutions to problems that would solve themselves if just given a month or 2, and it tends to be solutions that cost money, and the hobby is already prohibitively expensive for 75+% of the population even in wealthier countries.

 

[Reef By Steele Verified Sponsor]

From the listing they don’t list the genus of copepod. Actually in description it says daphnia which are fresh water. Maybe has something to do with regulations, but I would suggest Tisbe or another Harpacticoida genus pod. Dosing a live diatom phytoplankton such as Thalassiosira weissflogii will consume silicate shortening the amount of time before your diatom bloom will end.

 

[elzibar]

From the listing they don’t list the genus of copepod. Actually in description it says daphnia which are fresh water. Maybe has something to do with regulations, but I would suggest Tisbe or another Harpacticoida genus pod. Dosing a live diatom phytoplankton such as Thalassiosira weissflogii will consume silicate shortening the amount of time before your diatom bloom will end.

Thanks for the info.
Don't suppose you could explain the diatom phytoplankton thing in basic terms. Not something I know anything about.

Sorry, thanks.

 

[Reef By Steele Verified Sponsor]

Thanks for the info.
Don't suppose you could explain the diatom phytoplankton thing in basic terms. Not something I know anything about.

Sorry, thanks.

Yes, there are strains of phytoplankton that are considered diatoms. The three I culture are Thalassiosira weissflogii, Paeodactylum tricornium, and Chaetoceros gracilis. They are brown algae high in HUFA (Highly Unsaturated Fatty Acids). They do not coat your aquarium in a brown coating like the diatoms we fight in a new tank, but like them they require silicate to survive. Dosing a live phytoplankton or phytoplankton blend can assist in lessening the impact of the ugly stage by consuming nutrients such as nitrates, phosphates and with the right strains silicates.

In established tanks they continue to do this naturally as well as provide filter feeders and livestock such as copepods with nutritional benefits.

 

[elzibar]

Yes, there are strains of phytoplankton that are considered diatoms. The three I culture are Thalassiosira weissflogii, Paeodactylum tricornium, and Chaetoceros gracilis. They are brown algae high in HUFA (Highly Unsaturated Fatty Acids). They do not coat your aquarium in a brown coating like the diatoms we fight in a new tank, but like them they require silicate to survive. Dosing a live phytoplankton or phytoplankton blend can assist in lessening the impact of the ugly stage by consuming nutrients such as nitrates, phosphates and with the right strains silicates.

In established tanks they continue to do this naturally as well as provide filter feeders and livestock such as copepods with nutritional benefits.

Thanks.