Purple ish red stuff on live rock

[kwall737]

Anyone know what this purple ish red stuff is covering one of my live rocks? At first i thought it was some kinda sponge that came when i bought it (fully live rock from Florida), but it’s really started spreading in the last 6 mo and is starting to eat away at one of my corals now. Tried scraping it off, and some of the color seems to go away when i do that, but it doesn’t come off easy and always comes back.

 

[blaxsun]

Cyano maybe?

 

[kwall737]

Cyano maybe?

So everything I’ve read about cyano is that it’s a slimy, velvety substance that can easily be removed … this stuff is none of those, and i can’t fully remove it even when scrubbing with a brush. Weird

 

[blaxsun]

And it's not coralline algae?

 

[kwall737]

And it's not coralline algae?

Nah it’s def not that shade of purple. And if it was coralline, it shouldn’t be slowly eating away at that gorgonian that’s pictured there, right?

 

[blaxsun]

Nah it’s def not that shade of purple. And if it was coralline, it shouldn’t be slowly eating away at that gorgonian that’s pictured there, right?

I wonder if it's dinos?

 

[sfin52]

So everything I’ve read about cyano is that it’s a slimy, velvety substance that can easily be removed … this stuff is none of those, and i can’t fully remove it even when scrubbing with a brush. Weird

Sponge

 

[sfin52]

I wonder if it's dinos?

Dinos should be easily blown off.

 

[blaxsun]

Dinos should be easily blown off.

Sponge it is.

 

[sfin52]

I suspect the hammers are stinging the gorg

 

[kwall737]

I wonder if it's dinos?

Looked into that too, and doesn’t seem to fit any of the pics or descriptions i see if those either

 

[kwall737]

Sponge

Was thinking that from the beginning, but would a sponge be killing off that gorgonian like that?

 

[kwall737]

I suspect the hammers are stinging the gorg

Yeah and I’ve been thinking about moving that hammer to make sure, but it seems like the die off on the gorg is right where that possible sponge is growing from the rock

 

[blaxsun]

I suspect the hammers are stinging the gorg

Yes. The red spongy stuff could just be a concidence.

 

[sfin52]

Was thinking that from the beginning, but would a sponge be killing off that gorgonian like that?

They can cover choke it out. If you look a lot of the recession is in range of the hammer.