Live phytoplankton
- Thread starter Robin316us
- Start date
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There are many benefits to dosing live phyto. In a natural reef, phytoplankton is at the base of the food chain. It converts sunlight into food via photosynthesis. The phyto is then consumed by other organisms which are consumed by other organisms and so on up the food chain. Without phytoplankton, our ocean’s reefs would not exist.
In a closed reef aquarium with filtration and a concentrated number of organisms, it isn’t really feasible to sustain a steady amount of phytoplankton. So, dosing is needed. There are many benefits observed by aquarists including higher pH, lower nutrient levels, less nuisance algae, increased growth of NPS corals and filter feeders, increased feeding response from many corals, increased numbers of pods and filter feeders, and increased bio-diversity in general.
The benefits of dosing phyto will vary somewhat from system to system, and not every reefer will observe every benefit. I tend to think of phyto as a very basic food that makes the system more diverse, robust, and healthy.
It would probably be helpful to consider your specific needs when determining which phyto is "best". If you are raising a specific organism, you can likely find information on it's nutritional needs if it is commonly raised. Different organisms have different nutritional needs. Since we have many organisms in our systems - and we really know very little about many of there dietary needs - there are a few things you might want to consider when choosing a source of phyto for dosing a reef tank.
- Is the phyto dead or alive? For some organisms, it won't matter, but for others it is critical to have live feed. It is also very difficult to overdose healthy, live phyto while dead phyto requires caution like any other dead food.
- Is there a variety of cell sizes? Different organisms have different requirements as far as cell size goes.
- Is there a blend of phyto species that have different nutritional profiles. Certain species have certain nutrients and lack others. Varying organisms need varying nutrients to thrive.
- Does the mix include motile and non-motile species. Again, some organisms don't care, others need motile cells, and some need non-motile cells. It is also important to know that the cells of the motile species are still motile and actually "swim" around.
- Does the mix include green and brown algaes as well as diatoms. In my opinion a good blend should have all three.
I believe that dosing phyto is one of the best things you can do for your reef. Properly dosing any good phyto will be beneficial, and dosing a top-quality blend of fresh live phyto is ideal in my opinion.
flagg37
Custom stair builder - TreeofLifeStairs.com
Do you know the approximate size of the phytoplankton? I know you said it varies by species but is there a range? I’ve been looking at using a roller mat but don’t want all this live phytoplankton getting caught in the media.
GarrettT
Well-Known Member
4-17 microns. Nanno, which is the most popular, is around 4-6 microns.
The species I culture range from 1 to 14 microns. I would have to check which species are which sizes, but that’s the range of all of them. I’m sure GarrettT is correct.
flagg37
Custom stair builder - TreeofLifeStairs.com
Thanks guys, that's good to know. The media I've been looking at is in the 30-50 micron size so I think I'm good to go for it.
rusty dowell
Active Member
I recently have been dosing phytoplankton in my 265 mixed Reef I made phytoplankton for my rotifers.
1. My cheato is melting
2 I had lots of bubble algae in display tank
Almost all gone(good thing)
Question is phytoplankton killing off my Cheato!
1. My cheato is melting
2 I had lots of bubble algae in display tank
Almost all gone(good thing)
Question is phytoplankton killing off my Cheato!
flagg37
Custom stair builder - TreeofLifeStairs.com
I wouldn’t suspect it to have any detrimental effects on chaeto; only beneficial.
