Who feeds phytoplankton?

[Trebor]

Has anyone used DT's phyto on a regular basis? Do you still use why or why not? Thanks good reefing to ya!

 

[Trebor]

Anybody?

 

[BigB7]

I used to use it but I do not anymore.. Every bottle I got always smelled really bad, like dead fish or something.. I maybe wrong here but I believe I read somewhere that if it stinks it is bad...

 

[chestnud]

I feed it along with my rotifers and copepods that I keep in a culture. Always had good success with it.

 

[Madreef]

Are you trying to feed your sps or fuel food for the sps?

I haven't added phyto to my sps systems in years.

 

[caudill187]

I have fed rotifers and copepods that have recently been fed with phyto. The SPS love it. My experience has been that not many corals will directly consume phytoplankton.

 

[Trebor]

I used to use it but I do not anymore.. Every bottle I got always smelled really bad, like dead fish or something.. I maybe wrong here but I believe I read somewhere that if it stinks it is bad...

They're supposed to smell like sulfur, anything else they could be dead>

 

[Trebor]

I have fed rotifers and copepods that have recently been fed with phyto. The SPS love it. My experience has been that not many corals will directly consume phytoplankton.

I have read that they do eat phyto, is this not true? I read it in a major reef magazine.

 

[chestnud]

I have a mixed reef of lps, spa, and clams. Like stated the rotifers and pods are living in a phyto culture. So i feed them along with some phyto they are living in.

 

[caudill187]

I have read that they do eat phyto, is this not true? I read it in a major reef magazine.

Most corals of the corals that we keep (stony corals, larger zoanthids) are carnivores, and will predominantly feed on zooplankton. Larger polyps can capture larger, meaty foods. Some sources say that some zoanthids will consume and digest phytoplankton, but I have yet to witness this in any of my systems. What I read suggests that smaller zoanthids filter large organic molecules (fatty acids, proteins, etc.) and bacteria but it is difficult to study this. My understanding is that soft corals are more likely to consume phyto, but I don't keep many in this group.

I have dosed phyto in the past, but to feed the smaller invertebrates of the tank (pods, etc.) and clams.

Here is a cool video:

Proof positive SPS corals consume zooplankton [video] — Advanced Aquarist's Online Magazine

Here is a paragraph from reefkeeping magazine, with citations to reputable sources:

"While some studies have indicated that some stony corals are capable of clearing phytoplankton from the water, these experiments have not been rigorous (Wilkinson et al. 1988, Szmant-Froelich and Pilson 1984, Sorokin 1981, 1995). Ingestion does not equate to digestion. The extent to which phytoplankton contribute to stony coral nutrition is unknown, but it is probably unlikely that phytoplankton are an important food source for most stony corals. Among those reported or suggested to clear or ingest phytoplankton are: Acropora, Siderastrea, Montipora, Porites, Astrangia and Tubastraea. Other studies tend to directly refute these suggestions for all but Astrangia and Porites. More directly, Goniopora and Alveopora may have more herbivorous tendencies (Peach unpublished thesis). Stony corals are generally not well adapted to the sieve or filter type feeding that characterizes the soft corals (Fabricius et al. 1995, 1998). They are, however, well suited to the capture of zooplankton prey. I am sure that future studies will examine potential roles of phytoplanktivory in the Scleractinia in more detail. However, I think it safe to assume that the number of stony corals that depend on phytoplankton as a food source will be minimal, or that the relative contribution of phytoplankton to their energy needs will be slight."

 

[Trebor]

Most corals of the corals that we keep (stony corals, larger zoanthids) are carnivores, and will predominantly feed on zooplankton. Larger polyps can capture larger, meaty foods. Some sources say that some zoanthids will consume and digest phytoplankton, but I have yet to witness this in any of my systems. What I read suggests that smaller zoanthids filter large organic molecules (fatty acids, proteins, etc.) and bacteria but it is difficult to study this. My understanding is that soft corals are more likely to consume phyto, but I don't keep many in this group.

I have dosed phyto in the past, but to feed the smaller invertebrates of the tank (pods, etc.) and clams.

Here is a cool video:

Proof positive SPS corals consume zooplankton [video] — Advanced Aquarist's Online Magazine

Here is a paragraph from reefkeeping magazine, with citations to reputable sources:

"While some studies have indicated that some stony corals are capable of clearing phytoplankton from the water, these experiments have not been rigorous (Wilkinson et al. 1988, Szmant-Froelich and Pilson 1984, Sorokin 1981, 1995). Ingestion does not equate to digestion. The extent to which phytoplankton contribute to stony coral nutrition is unknown, but it is probably unlikely that phytoplankton are an important food source for most stony corals. Among those reported or suggested to clear or ingest phytoplankton are: Acropora, Siderastrea, Montipora, Porites, Astrangia and Tubastraea. Other studies tend to directly refute these suggestions for all but Astrangia and Porites. More directly, Goniopora and Alveopora may have more herbivorous tendencies (Peach unpublished thesis). Stony corals are generally not well adapted to the sieve or filter type feeding that characterizes the soft corals (Fabricius et al. 1995, 1998). They are, however, well suited to the capture of zooplankton prey. I am sure that future studies will examine potential roles of phytoplanktivory in the Scleractinia in more detail. However, I think it safe to assume that the number of stony corals that depend on phytoplankton as a food source will be minimal, or that the relative contribution of phytoplankton to their energy needs will be slight."

Good video I feed zooplankton as well.

 

[mobatic]

I've used it in the past, only when I had softies, but realized it's not a good idea to use for an SPS dominated tank.

Kind of wasteful, tossing money away buying those, if you can culture it, cool. But personally I wouldn't use it either way with my past experiences.

I do feed rotifers, oyster eggs and on occasion cyclopeeze.