New tank - is this Bryopsis?

DWPhilli · Jul 3, 2019

My tank has been cycling for 36 days now. Started with dry sand and rocks, and just a few small pieces of live rock to seed.

I had to go out of town for a week and ammonia and nitrites were still above 0, when I came back I had this growing on the top shelf rocks, and along the back wall.

I am getting a CUC later this week, and have a Lawnmower blenny in QT.

I am just wondering if this is normal / something the CUC & LMB will take care of, or is it Bryopsis?

Thanks!

EmdeReef · Jul 3, 2019

It could be briopsis or hair algae. Easiest way to ID briopsis without a scope is by its leaves which flatten towards the top and look serrated.

A pic without the blues on would help.

CUC IMO is not good at clearing it up. Foxface and tangs will sometimes eat it. My one spot loves it, but there are people on here who were not so lucky.

DWPhilli · Jul 3, 2019

Pics without blues

Huff747 · Jul 3, 2019

That looks fern like to me. If it's isolated I'd pull that rock out and peroxide it or something or light it on fire. I had no luck with bryopsis. I tried fluc at the recommended dosages/timeframes 3 times and it always came back, and seemed to come back angrier than ever. Eventually I treated with fluconazole as recommended and then treated every weekly water change with fluc for 4 months and it appears to be finally gone. But kill it with fire as soon as you can and if you can stop it from spreading do it. That stuff stinks and I had a Kole tang, tuxedo urchins, snails (trochus, nerite, turbo, etc), and assorted hermits and nobody seemed to want to eat bryopsis.

Huff747 · Jul 3, 2019

PS - I had corals and an anemone during all the treatments, including the 4 months of weekly water changes. The anemone came through fine, blastos, zoas, duncan, hammers, and a favia came through fine. But I did lose 2 other favia, and the only SPS in the tank, a generic green acro. Can't say it was from the treatment but they were growing/encrusting before I started treating.