What are those "flower algae"

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

Remind me what these macroalgae are called.
I thought for 2 months that bryopsis had taken over the whole thing, but it looks like after the hairy end- on these sticks, a "flower" cap grows. I remember someone telling me the name and it didn't seem to be bryopsis.
Also would like to hear how bad it is.
I'm thinking of getting myself a yellow fox fish for the summer, will it eat them?

fishguy242 · Mar 13, 2024

Sorry cannot come up with name, common to come in an backs of snails, @vetteguy53081 ?
Edit: umbrella algae

Reefkeepers Archive · Mar 13, 2024

Are you talking about the zoanthids? If the majority of those aren't zoas/If none of them are zoas then maybe Acetabularia acetabulum

vetteguy53081 · Mar 13, 2024

itelshot said:
Remind me what these macroalgae are called.
I thought for 2 months that bryopsis had taken over the whole thing, but it looks like after the hairy end- on these sticks, a "flower" cap grows. I remember someone telling me the name and it didn't seem to be bryopsis.
Also would like to hear how bad it is.
I'm thinking of getting myself a yellow fox fish for the summer, will it eat them?

Looks like derbesia similar to bryopsis and is one of the more challenging of algae due to need of its complete removal. Removal is best accomplished by taking the rock and snail out of tank and placing in a container of tank water. Then you will want to pull as much as you can by hand and discard. With a dental pick or small crochet needle, pull the roots off the rock. YOU MUST GET EVERY ROOT OR IT WILL SIMPLY RETURN !!
After you are done return rock to tank and reduce white light intensity and even hours of white light and add the following cleaners which will help with control. These guys will consume bryopsis but not as fast as bryopsis can grow - They will never keep up.
Pin cushion urchin, Chiton snails, pitho crabs, and larger astrea snails

This procedure is not as bad or time consuming as it seems. Assure phosphate levels do not become elevated which helps feed this algae

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

vetteguy53081 said:
Looks like derbesia similar to bryopsis and is one of the more challenging of algae due to need of its complete removal. Removal is best accomplished by taking the rock and snail out of tank and placing in a container of tank water. Then you will want to pull as much as you can by hand and discard. With a dental pick or small crochet needle, pull the roots off the rock. YOU MUST GET EVERY ROOT OR IT WILL SIMPLY RETURN !!
After you are done return rock to tank and reduce white light intensity and even hours of white light and add the following cleaners which will help with control. These guys will consume bryopsis but not as fast as bryopsis can grow - They will never keep up.
Pin cushion urchin, Chiton snails, pitho crabs, and larger astrea snails

This procedure is not as bad or time consuming as it seems. Assure phosphate levels do not become elevated which helps feed this algae

I knew you'd be the first to answer. Now I'm upset. This crap is on every stone in the display. It's the first one that sprouted after a total peroxide cleanse that left me battling dinos for months. This stone in particular was brushed and peroxide cleaned then, but it still sprouted. It's also not so easy to pull it out completely with tweezers, as I realized, because the stem just bursts like a bubble (maybe even spreads the spores).

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

vetteguy53081 said:
Looks like derbesia similar to bryopsis and is one of the more challenging of algae due to need of its complete removal. Removal is best accomplished by taking the rock and snail out of tank and placing in a container of tank water. Then you will want to pull as much as you can by hand and discard. With a dental pick or small crochet needle, pull the roots off the rock. YOU MUST GET EVERY ROOT OR IT WILL SIMPLY RETURN !!
After you are done return rock to tank and reduce white light intensity and even hours of white light and add the following cleaners which will help with control. These guys will consume bryopsis but not as fast as bryopsis can grow - They will never keep up.
Pin cushion urchin, Chiton snails, pitho crabs, and larger astrea snails

This procedure is not as bad or time consuming as it seems. Assure phosphate levels do not become elevated which helps feed this algae

Hm, but i think @Reefkeepers Archive was right, that is a kind of this algae. It also has this hairy strings before cap is formed. That is why i thought it is bryophis at the first time with no caps

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

also i dont like this breeding picture from wiki...

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

I need yellow fox faster than i think, hopefully I'll pass my first job interview so I can get hired)

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

Reefkeepers Archive said:
Are you talking about the zoanthids? If the majority of those aren't zoas/If none of them are zoas then maybe Acetabularia acetabulum

There are only 2 not good-looking zoas)

DaJMasta · Mar 13, 2024

Acetabularia crenulata - https://www.reefcleaners.org/store/out-of-season/mermaids-wine-glass-detail , thought admittedly, the stem structure looks somewhat different. Could be another in the same group.

vetteguy53081 · Mar 13, 2024

itelshot said:
Hm, but i think @Reefkeepers Archive was right, that is a kind of this algae. It also has this hairy strings before cap is formed. That is why i thought it is bryophis at the first time with no caps

Oh, youre talking about the stems? You didnt really specify as there is a few things present in the pic

vetteguy53081 · Mar 13, 2024

itelshot said:
I knew you'd be the first to answer. Now I'm upset. This crap is on every stone in the display. It's the first one that sprouted after a total peroxide cleanse that left me battling dinos for months. This stone in particular was brushed and peroxide cleaned then, but it still sprouted. It's also not so easy to pull it out completely with tweezers, as I realized, because the stem just bursts like a bubble (maybe even spreads the spores).

I see youre from Kyiv. Mt boss happens to be there right now with his wife and mother in law who live in Ukraine

ISpeakForTheSeas · Mar 13, 2024

itelshot said:
on these sticks, a "flower" cap grows.

If it's an algae with a "flower" cap on it, then it's either Acetabularia or Parvocaulis.

Acetabularia tends to have long, thin stems while Parvocaulis tends to have short, thick stems; Acetabularia caps also have a lot of tiny segments in them and tend to be more like mushroom caps (uniformly up or down from the center), while Parvocaulis caps have a few large segments and tend to be more like flowers (either angled up in a cup/bowl shape or arching up then down from the center like flower petals).

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

vetteguy53081 said:
Oh, youre talking about the stems? You didnt really specify as there is a few things present in the pic

Yeah, maybe I should have circled. I'll rip a few off and take some close up pictures when I get home

itelshot · Mar 13, 2024

ISpeakForTheSeas said:
If it's an algae with a "flower" cap on it, then it's either Acetabularia or Parvocaulis.

Acetabularia tends to have long, thin stems while Parvocaulis tends to have short, thick stems; Acetabularia caps also have a lot of tiny segments in them and tend to be more like mushroom caps (uniformly up or down from the center), while Parvocaulis caps have a few large segments and tend to be more like flowers (either angled up in a cup/bowl shape or arching up then down from the center like flower petals).