Hundreds of tiny sponges??

[Chris Van Daele]

Hello,

Recently I have seen hundreds of tiny whitish sponges pop up in my tank. They tend to be in areas of lower light and flow. My sump is literally full of them.

What are these things and what causes them? Are they beneficial? Am I basically stuck with them?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Palyzoa]

Pineapple sponges? pictures would help.

 

[ReefSlice]

Sponges are a great sign in a reef! I just recently started feeding multiple times a day and had an explosion in sponge growth over the past few weeks. As long as your system can handle the nutrients in the water (your no3 and po4 are staying low), these sponges are harmless and great filter feeders.

 

[Bdrake]

Could you post pictures? Typically they're pineapple sponges in the sump and those are beneficial

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

In newer tanks , higher bacterial and nutint content in the water and the presence of silicates can spur the growth of pineapple sponges.

Generally , like diatoms (another silicate user ) they fade away over time.