zooxanthellae and color

[SpringFever]

Posting up some links sent to me by lakshwadeep...

 

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/feb2002/Feature.htm

 

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-01/atj/index.php

 

-----------------------------------------

Again, THANKS to all for the informative replies.

 

Second article was great! Thanks for posting that.

[rtparty]

A coral's color has nothing to do with that color being a coral's "sunscreen". That theory was put to rest a while back.

 

To get best colors out of corals it has all to do with import and export of nutrients. Less nutrients means better coral color because you have less algae growth in the coral.

 

I have been dosing vodka since I set up my newest tank, about 7 months at this point. About 2-3 weeks ago I started dosing MicroBacter7 from Brightwell Aquatics. All I can say is WOW! I thought my colors and growth were good before but since I started dosing things have exploded! It took about 2 weeks for the tank to acclimate to the new system but it was well worth it.

 

I can't believe the growth on a few of my corals and the color has been getting quite a bit better too lately.

 

The good thing that dosing bacteria adds is the planktonic food that others have talked about. Corals are animals, not plants. Treat them as such by feeding them real food.

[SpringFever]

I'm just thinking out loud here... Mostly conjecture, but conjecture derived from a good source.

 

From this article, it sounds like coral have the ability to strike their own balance of zooxanthellae within their tissue by varying the waste it makes available and physically expelling any excess algae. Only in extreme stress does a coral's ability to maintain this balance degrade (bleaching).

 

I think it is clear that zooxanthellae are brown, and that higher densities dull the colors of our coral. I think the question now becomes: how do we adjust this this balance in our favor? Again, from the article above, it sounded as though the key is augmenting planktonic foods (protein) available to the animal.

 

Zooxanthellae photosynthesize and only produce carbohydrates. If proteins are not readily available to the coral, it will have to more heavily rely on the zooxanthellae for survival - pushing the balance in the brown direction. If we can increase the protein available to the coral, we can limit its dependence on the zooxanthellae, perhaps pushing the balance in the vibrant direction.

 

Edit: The initial post asked about tanks that didn't get fed that still had great color. According to Mr. Fenner's theory, the only way that would happen is if protein is made available through means other than introduced foods intended for the coral. For that to happen, the tank would have to be extremely diverse and heavily stocked (i.e. lots of fish poop, and fauna reproducing).

 

Thanks for the thought provoking question!

[Mojorizn]

Thanks again for all the great replies.

 

Some really good info and now it makes sense....

 

1) Good lighting in proper spectrum

2) Low nutrient in the water column

3) Feeding of plankton type foods

 

I just made a few more synapse connections ... lol

[treygarz]

Good journal articles to read through.

 

Why are there Bright Colors in Sessile Marine Invertebrates? <--Free PDF for full article

Author: Wicksten, Mary K.

Source: Bulletin of Marine Science, Volume 45, Number 2, September 1989 , pp. 519-530(12)

Publisher: University of Miami - Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science

Link: http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/umrs...000002/art00025

 

 

Observations on the relationships between several species of tropical zoanthids (Zoanthidea, coelenterata) and their Zooxanthellae

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

Volume 7, Issue 2, July 1971, Pages 207-214

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=A...mp;searchtype=a

 

Nutrient Limitation in the Symbiotic Association between Zooxanthellae and Reef-building Corals

http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10125/2230

 

The effect of sudden changes in temperature, light and salinity on the population density and export of zooxanthellae from the reef corals Stylophora pistillata Esper and Seriatopora hystrix Dana

Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology

Volume 129, Issue 3, 22 August 1989, Pages 279-303

Link: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=A...mp;searchtype=a

[d9hp]

Thanks again for all the great replies.

 

Some really good info and now it makes sense....

 

1) Good lighting in proper spectrum

2) Low nutrient in the water column

3) Feeding of plankton type foods

 

I just made a few more synapse connections ... lol

 

2 and 3 become a bit more difficult when feeding those plankton foods because the 'low nutrient' part of number 2 is actually just low dissolved nutrients (nitrate, phosphate). So it's up to continual water changes to keep the nutrients (planktonic foods) high but keep the dissolved nutrients near zero.

 

Is that right?

 

Great thread

[rtparty]

2 and 3 become a bit more difficult when feeding those plankton foods because the 'low nutrient' part of number 2 is actually just low dissolved nutrients (nitrate, phosphate). So it's up to continual water changes to keep the nutrients (planktonic foods) high but keep the dissolved nutrients near zero.

 

Is that right?

 

Great thread

 

 

Not quite.

 

Using products like MicroBacter7 will provide planktonic food while keeping nutrients low.

 

There are quite a few other bacteria products that are flooding the market right now. I use MB7 and love what is has done for my tank. My colors and growth are really taking off since I started carbon dosing and using MB7.

[Trick]

how does the microbacter7 help an already established tank. It should already have the microbes it needs.

[SpringFever]

1) Good lighting in proper spectrum

2) Low nutrient in the water column

3) Feeding of plankton type foods

2 and 3 become a bit more difficult when feeding those plankton foods because the 'low nutrient' part of number 2 is actually just low dissolved nutrients (nitrate, phosphate). So it's up to continual water changes to keep the nutrients (planktonic foods) high but keep the dissolved nutrients near zero.

 

Is that right?

 

Great thread

 

Shazam! you nailed it, d9hp! If you hold a 3' cubed net on the face of a reef, it will catch some 2lbs of planktonic material in one day. That just goes to show how much food is available to our coral's cousins out there on the reef. We can't dump 2lbs of coral frenzy in the tank every day, so how do we offer the maximum amount of food without fouling the tank? That usually comes in the form of heavy skimming, frequent water-changes, proper mechanical filtration (clean the filter often!), DSBs, and reactors filled with GFO or other sponge type substance.

 

The down side to this system is that it kills the naturally occurring food breeding and multiplying in your refugium. Zooplankton (pods and amphipods) gets caught in filter socks and chewed up by skimmers and return pumps. Therefore we are forcing ourselves to artificially introduce them.

 

Not quite.

 

Using products like MicroBacter7 will provide planktonic food while keeping nutrients low.

 

There are quite a few other bacteria products that are flooding the market right now. I use MB7 and love what is has done for my tank. My colors and growth are really taking off since I started carbon dosing and using MB7.

 

Dosing this in a tank set up in a way I described above would do very little for coral. Plankton is divided into two main categories: Phytoplankton and Zooplankton. The former is plant, algae, and bacteria. The latter is made of primarily miniature crustations like copeopods and amphipods. All of the articles sited in this thread have said that coral get little to no nutrition from phytoplankton. Zooplankton do feed on phytoplankton, but that doesn't do any good if they get chewed up in a skimmer or caught in floss

 

Look for zooplankton if you are going to feed a planktonic food.

[Akwarius]

I agree with everything above except frequent water changes. I change 5 gallons in a 200 gallon system once a month to replace trace elements (dont try this at home!) I feed several tangs heavily and live food to everyone else. At night I feed planktonic and sps favorable food, as well as mb7 and heavy detritus basting. I also remove the detritus from my sump and feed that to the display. IME bacteria can be a VERY valuable food source for stony corals.

[Mojorizn]

I agree with everything above except frequent water changes. I change 5 gallons in a 200 gallon system once a month to replace trace elements (dont try this at home!) I feed several tangs heavily and live food to everyone else. At night I feed planktonic and sps favorable food, as well as mb7 and heavy detritus basting. I also remove the detritus from my sump and feed that to the display. IME bacteria can be a VERY valuable food source for stony corals.

 

Seems to me that your system would be nutrient heavy. But, at the same time, if this is your regular routine then your system must be able to handle the load.

 

I've always thought that a system would stabilize and adjust to it's bioload... to a point of course.

 

So, in your case, how's your nutrient load and how do you regulate it? Skimming / Carbon / GFO / DSB?

[Akwarius]

Seems to me that your system would be nutrient heavy. But, at the same time, if this is your regular routine then your system must be able to handle the load.

 

I've always thought that a system would stabilize and adjust to it's bioload... to a point of course.

 

So, in your case, how's your nutrient load and how do you regulate it? Skimming / Carbon / GFO / DSB?

 

Nutrients: N03: 0.25-0.5, P04: undetectable

Export: recirculating skimmer, macros, carbon, rowaphos, vinegar dosing, and 500ml ecobak. no sandbed.