Is this Dino's im dealing with?

Rmcuddy · Mar 13, 2020

I'm at a loss on how to remove this from my sandbed. This has been going on for months....I added a 40w UV that I run 24/7, I've done several 3 day blackouts, and also tried the Dr. Tim's method of removing dinos. Nothing helps. It will go away for a few days after the blackout but comes right back. My tank is a little over a year old, has 10 Nitrates and .13 Phoshphates. I finally got a microscope to help ID what I'm dealing with. Can anyone help me out with my next step?

Malifry97 · Mar 13, 2020

#reefsquad

Idoc · Mar 13, 2020

The final movie does look like dinos, Amphidinium type possibly. They large ones don't go into the water column, the small cell amphidinium dinos do.

Try to get some more pics without the "junk" pieces. Just look for moving cells on the outside of the clumps... helps with identifying.

Look into the Elegant Corals Dino/Cyano treatment. I battled small cell amphidinium dinos for about a year... this really helped get them under control for me.

There's not usually a quick fix... unless you have ostreopsis dinos that can be controlled very easily with UV. I have those kinds as well.

Rmcuddy · Mar 13, 2020

Idoc said:
The final movie does look like dinos, Amphidinium type possibly. They large ones don't go into the water column, the small cell amphidinium dinos do.

Try to get some more pics without the "junk" pieces. Just look for moving cells on the outside of the clumps... helps with identifying.

Look into the Elegant Corals Dino/Cyano treatment. I battled small cell amphidinium dinos for about a year... this really helped get them under control for me.

There's not usually a quick fix... unless you have ostreopsis dinos that can be controlled very easily with UV. I have those kinds as well.

This is about the best my dinky microscope will do

Idoc · Mar 13, 2020

Looks like amphidinium dinos. A 3 day blackout doesn't work. I've done a 5.5 fast blackout and they lived thru it. @taricha had amphidinium live up to 9 days in a blackout.

I have ostreoosis in a small coral quarantine tank and they come back eventually even after 5 day blackouts. I personally don't think blackouts kill them all off but rather have many of them hibernate to return later. Or, possibly they have different growth phases we aren't aware of yet and thes blackout doesn't work on the early growth phases possibly...just all theory.