I’ve heard somewhere that in an ULNS, you need to feed corals more often to promote faster growth and better colouration. Thinking alternatively, if a system has high nutrient value, does it mean that I just need to feed less or completely stop feeding and still achieve the same result ?
ULNS and high nutrient system question
- Thread starter Leez
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PatW
2500 Club Member
One of the ideas with ULNS is to sort of mimic natural reef conditions: alk about 8, nitrates below 5 ppm, phosphates below .03 ppm. But one can still feed either coral either directly or indirectly by feeding fish and figuring that fish poop or microorganisms feeding on poop feed corals.
ULNS also are used to control pest algae.
There is an idea that new tanks should run ULNS and later can go to higher nutrients. Established systems have the flora and fauna to cope with higher nutrient loads.
I think that feeding corals is probably a separate strategy. I suspect that some corals will better thrive on feeding and others don’t really need it.
When you add frags to a system, some thrive and others either wither and die or just don’t do well. Of course, some corals might do well in most regimes. You can have a flourishing SPS system using different approaches but you might have a different community of corals.
BRS has a series of videos on growing SPS corals. You might watch it.
ULNS also are used to control pest algae.
There is an idea that new tanks should run ULNS and later can go to higher nutrients. Established systems have the flora and fauna to cope with higher nutrient loads.
I think that feeding corals is probably a separate strategy. I suspect that some corals will better thrive on feeding and others don’t really need it.
When you add frags to a system, some thrive and others either wither and die or just don’t do well. Of course, some corals might do well in most regimes. You can have a flourishing SPS system using different approaches but you might have a different community of corals.
BRS has a series of videos on growing SPS corals. You might watch it.
No.
ULNS is values below that of natural seawater. You need to use organic carbon, GFO or other media to get there. I would not do this unless you are really sure that it is what you want to do - Europoean ZeoVit tanks do this and some of them look really great.
There are NSW level tanks that use natural methods of N and P removal, but they usually have high throughput and massive import and export. NSW is .005-.01 P, .1N and 6.8-7.0 dKh of carbonate.
Some corals might catch some food, but some won't. NPS, LPS, etc. can probably eat, but most acropora cannot. Outside of NPS, no coral needs fed and can get all of the sugars that they want from the zoox with light.
The bottom line is that N and P are NOT food. They are building blocks of life. You need them, but not many of them. Once you have a surplus, then more of a surplus will not help corals grow. Corals get energy from the zoox with sugars as a byproduct of photosynthesis.
ULNS is values below that of natural seawater. You need to use organic carbon, GFO or other media to get there. I would not do this unless you are really sure that it is what you want to do - Europoean ZeoVit tanks do this and some of them look really great.
There are NSW level tanks that use natural methods of N and P removal, but they usually have high throughput and massive import and export. NSW is .005-.01 P, .1N and 6.8-7.0 dKh of carbonate.
Some corals might catch some food, but some won't. NPS, LPS, etc. can probably eat, but most acropora cannot. Outside of NPS, no coral needs fed and can get all of the sugars that they want from the zoox with light.
The bottom line is that N and P are NOT food. They are building blocks of life. You need them, but not many of them. Once you have a surplus, then more of a surplus will not help corals grow. Corals get energy from the zoox with sugars as a byproduct of photosynthesis.
Timfish
Crusty Old Salt
Until you have some experience with your specific corals I would recommend not feeding them. Here's why: Feeding stragegies varies by species, what benefits one species inhibits another species. Species that do benefit from feeding may have a "Goldilocks" response, a small amount may not be good, a little more may be benficial, and add a little more and it's bad. Dosing nitrates and/or phsohpates has a negative impact on calcification and growth while fish poop had a positive effect.
Here's a couple quotes by two noted reef scientists on nutrients on reefs:
"When I see the colors of some of these low nutrient tanks, I can't help but be reminded of bleached coral reefs. It should therefore not come as a surprise that feeding corals in such systems becomes a very important component in these systems. Though reefs are often catagorized as nutrient "deserts" the influx of nutrients in the form of particulates and plankton is quite high when the total volume of water passing over a reef is taken into consideration.
Our crystal-clear aquaria do not come close to the nutrient loads that swirl around natural reefs. And so when we create low-nutrient water conditions, we still have to deal with the rest of a much more complex puzzle. Much like those who run their aquarium water temperature close to the thermal maximums of corals walk a narrow tight rope, I can't help but think that low-nutrient aquariums may be headed down a similar path." Charles Delbeck, Coral Nov/Dec 2010, pg 127
"Imported nutrients are usually transported to reefs from rivers; but if there are no rivers, as with reefs remote from land masses, nutrients can only come from surface ocean circulation. Often this supply is poor, and thus the vast ocean expanses have been refered to as "nutrient deserts". The Indo-Pacific has many huge atolls in these supposed deserts which testify to the resilience of reefs, but the corals themselves may lack the lush appearance of those of more fertile waters. Many reefs have another major supply of inorganic nutrients as, under certain conditions, surface currents moving against a reef face may cause deep ocean water to be drawn to the surface. This "upwelled" water is often rich in phosphorus and other essential chemicals." J. E. N. Veron "Corals of Austrailia and the Indo-Pacific" pg 30
Here's some more links:
Nitrate increases zooxanthellae population density and reduces skeletogenesis in corals
link.springer.com
Nitrate enrichment can increase the susceptibility of reef corals to bleaching
Ultrastructural Biomarkers in Symbiotic Algae Reflect the Availability of Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients and Particulate Food to the Reef Coral Holobiont
www.frontiersin.org
Phosphate deficiency promotes coral bleaching and is reflected by the ultrastructure of symbiotic dinoflagellates
www.sciencedirect.com
High phosphate uptake requirements of the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata
jeb.biologists.org
Here's a couple quotes by two noted reef scientists on nutrients on reefs:
"When I see the colors of some of these low nutrient tanks, I can't help but be reminded of bleached coral reefs. It should therefore not come as a surprise that feeding corals in such systems becomes a very important component in these systems. Though reefs are often catagorized as nutrient "deserts" the influx of nutrients in the form of particulates and plankton is quite high when the total volume of water passing over a reef is taken into consideration.
Our crystal-clear aquaria do not come close to the nutrient loads that swirl around natural reefs. And so when we create low-nutrient water conditions, we still have to deal with the rest of a much more complex puzzle. Much like those who run their aquarium water temperature close to the thermal maximums of corals walk a narrow tight rope, I can't help but think that low-nutrient aquariums may be headed down a similar path." Charles Delbeck, Coral Nov/Dec 2010, pg 127
"Imported nutrients are usually transported to reefs from rivers; but if there are no rivers, as with reefs remote from land masses, nutrients can only come from surface ocean circulation. Often this supply is poor, and thus the vast ocean expanses have been refered to as "nutrient deserts". The Indo-Pacific has many huge atolls in these supposed deserts which testify to the resilience of reefs, but the corals themselves may lack the lush appearance of those of more fertile waters. Many reefs have another major supply of inorganic nutrients as, under certain conditions, surface currents moving against a reef face may cause deep ocean water to be drawn to the surface. This "upwelled" water is often rich in phosphorus and other essential chemicals." J. E. N. Veron "Corals of Austrailia and the Indo-Pacific" pg 30
Here's some more links:
Nitrate increases zooxanthellae population density and reduces skeletogenesis in corals
Nitrate increases zooxanthellae population density and reduces skeletogenesis in corals - Marine Biology
Very little information exists on the effects of nitrate on corals, although this is the major form in which nitrogen is prescrit in tropical eutrophie coastal waters. In this study we incubated nubbins ofPorites porites and explants ofMontastrea annularis in laboratory photostats illuminated by...
link.springer.com
Nitrate enrichment can increase the susceptibility of reef corals to bleaching
Ultrastructural Biomarkers in Symbiotic Algae Reflect the Availability of Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients and Particulate Food to the Reef Coral Holobiont
Frontiers | Ultrastructural Biomarkers in Symbiotic Algae Reflect the Availability of Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients and Particulate Food to the Reef Coral Holobiont
Reef building corals associated with symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) can access environmental nutrients from different sources, most significantly via the up...
www.frontiersin.org
Phosphate deficiency promotes coral bleaching and is reflected by the ultrastructure of symbiotic dinoflagellates
Phosphate deficiency promotes coral bleaching and is reflected by the ultrastructure of symbiotic dinoflagellates
Enrichment of reef environments with dissolved inorganic nutrients is considered a major threat to the survival of corals living in symbiosis with din…
High phosphate uptake requirements of the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata
High phosphate uptake requirements of the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata
SUMMARYSeveral untested aspects of the regulation of inorganic nutrient uptake were examined using nutrient depletion experiments with the symbiotic coral Stylophora pistillata. The total inhibition of phosphate uptake in artificial seawater lacking sodium indicates the involvement of a...
jeb.biologists.org
