zerokewl
Community Member
Does anyone run sponges instead of a skimmer on a nano tank ? I have a 15 gallon and I'm thinking of trying a yellow ball sponge instead of a skimmer . From what iv read they filter the same way ?
Sponge vs skimmer
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Miami Reef
10K Club Member
Bad idea. Sponges aren’t nearly as effective as skimmers, and the sponge will most likely die anyway because they are considered expert-only, whose requirements aren’t fully understood.
bushdoc
Valuable Member
I do not think it is sponge vs skimmer, they work on different principles and absorb different stuff.
Skimmer removes dissolved organic matter, sponge filters micro/nano plankton, including bacteria, but not DOM.
This particular sponge, you are considering is doing better in well established tanks, probably not in nano tanks.
Skimmer removes dissolved organic matter, sponge filters micro/nano plankton, including bacteria, but not DOM.
This particular sponge, you are considering is doing better in well established tanks, probably not in nano tanks.
AquaticYeti
Active Member
75g is a minimal setup with no sump only filtering with live rock and a marineland polishing filter; no automation other than lighting so I gave fluctuations with parameters.
M
75g is a minimal setup with no sump only filtering with live rock and a marineland polishing filter; no automation other than lighting so I gave fluctuations with parameters.
AquaticYeti
Active Member
@bushdoc and @Miami Reef
I don’t mean to highjack but your commenting were interesting when thinking of my setup and this conversation could add value to future reefers.
I have pink and blue sponges growing throughout my tank, primarily around corals, and would like to eradicate so they don’t outcompete the corals.
As far as parameters, my 75g is a minimal setup with no sump, only filtering with live rock and a marineland polishing filter and 20% water changes biweekly. I have no automation other than lighting so I have fluctuations with parameters.
Y’all’s thoughts?
I don’t mean to highjack but your commenting were interesting when thinking of my setup and this conversation could add value to future reefers.
I have pink and blue sponges growing throughout my tank, primarily around corals, and would like to eradicate so they don’t outcompete the corals.
As far as parameters, my 75g is a minimal setup with no sump, only filtering with live rock and a marineland polishing filter and 20% water changes biweekly. I have no automation other than lighting so I have fluctuations with parameters.
Y’all’s thoughts?
Timfish
Crusty Old Salt
I wouldn't get a ball sponge as they tend not to do well long term. As far as using living sponges in general I think the research is pretty solid that at least some species are essential recyclers and can remove DOC(DOM) 1000X faster than the bacterioplankton removed by skimmers. They are a double edge sword though in they have been implicated in working with algae causing phase shifts to algae dominated reefs when they get too much labile DOC. Here's links if you're interested in reading more. FWIW the best source for cryptic sponges is maricultured live rock. (Gulf Live ROck, Tampa Bay Saltwater, KP Aquatics)
Element cycling on tropical coral reefs.
This is Jasper de Geoij's ground breaking research on reef sponge finding some species process labile DOC 1000X faster than bacterioplankton. (The introduction is in Dutch but the content is in English.)
Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle
www.pnas.org
Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges
www.pnas.org
Differential recycling of coral and algal dissolved organic matter via the sponge loop.
Sponges treat DOC from algae differently than DOC from corals
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
academic.oup.com
Surviving in a Marine Desert The Sponge Loop Retains Resources Within Coral Reefs
Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen are quickly processed by sponges and released back into the reef food web in hours as carbon and nitrogen rich detritus.
www.researchgate.net
Natural Diet of Coral-Excavating Sponges Consists Mainly of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC)
The Role of Marine Sponges in Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles of COral Reefs and Nearshore Environments.
search.proquest.com
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
academic.oup.com
Element cycling on tropical coral reefs.
This is Jasper de Geoij's ground breaking research on reef sponge finding some species process labile DOC 1000X faster than bacterioplankton. (The introduction is in Dutch but the content is in English.)
Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle
Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle
Marine sponges are ubiquitous colonizers of shallow, clear-water environments in the oceans (1, 2). Sponges have emerged as significant mediators of biogeochemical fluxes in coastal zones by virtue of respiring organic matter and facilitating both the consumption and release of nutrients (3, 4)...
Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges
Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges
Coral reefs are highly productive ecosystems that raise a conundrum called “Darwin’s paradox”: How can high production flourish in low-nutrient conditions? We show here that in three abundant Caribbean sponges, the granules that have been commonly observed in sponge tissue for decades are...
Differential recycling of coral and algal dissolved organic matter via the sponge loop.
Sponges treat DOC from algae differently than DOC from corals
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A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
Coral reefs are economically important ecosystems that have suffered unprecedented losses of corals in the recent past. Why have Caribbean reefs in particu
academic.oup.com
Surviving in a Marine Desert The Sponge Loop Retains Resources Within Coral Reefs
Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen are quickly processed by sponges and released back into the reef food web in hours as carbon and nitrogen rich detritus.
(PDF) 2013 deGoeij Science Sponge loop
PDF | On Jun 23, 2015, Jasper M de Goeij and others published 2013 deGoeij Science Sponge loop | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate
www.researchgate.net
Natural Diet of Coral-Excavating Sponges Consists Mainly of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC)
The Role of Marine Sponges in Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles of COral Reefs and Nearshore Environments.
The role of marine sponges in carbon and nitrogen cycles of coral reef and nearshore environments - ProQuest
Explore millions of resources from scholarly journals, books, newspapers, videos and more, on the ProQuest Platform.
search.proquest.com
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
Coral reefs are economically important ecosystems that have suffered unprecedented losses of corals in the recent past. Why have Caribbean reefs in particu
academic.oup.com
