The notion that corals, like all other animals, need to feed in order to grow properly seems to have finally pervaded the aquarium hobby. Since the influential works of coral scientists such as Thomas Goreau and Leonard Muscatine, our knowledge of how corals gain nutrition has been steadily increasing.…
When we think about marine aquaria, we often think about light. And lots of it. To satisfy the needs of their precious corals, aquarists ensure their tanks are well lit by powerful lamps. Most people realize this is mostly for the benefit of the so-called zooxanthellae, which grow inside coral polyps.…
Over the last few years, two noteworthy lighting technologies have made their way to the aquarium industry and hobby. These are known as Light Emitting Diode (LED) and Light Emitting Plasma (LEP).…
In the first half of the 19th century, naturalists such as Charles Darwin started exploring coral reefs in more detail. When they gazed into the gin-clear waters of the Indo-Pacific, they saw massive structures built by what they called zoophytes (from Greek; zoon=animal, phuton=plant).…
There have been many debates about symbiotic flatworms, especially about their effect on corals. Aquarists have long regarded flatworms as a nuisance, possibly due to their unaesthetic appearance when present in large numbers.…
The genus Aiptasia contains several species of tropical anemones, which are found throughout the world. These anemones, similar to many other cnidarians such as reef-building corals, have formed a mutualistic symbiosis with dinoflagellate algae known as zooxanthellae (Venn et al.…
Read part one:Â “Improved husbandry of marine invertebrates using an innovative filtration technology – Part 1: DyMiCo ” by Tim Wijgerde, M.Sc.
As the marine ecosystems of our planet slowly dwindle, the demand for marine life from the aquarium industry puts evermore pressure on wild populations.…
The aquaculture and husbandry of exotic marine species is ever evolving, with breakthroughs occurring regularly. Currently, marine invertebrates that completely rely on heterotrophic feeding are not easily maintained in closed aquarium systems.…
This article was republished in collaboration with Coralscience.org. Please visit Coralscience.org to read more accessible scientific articles about coral reef research.
Zooplankton feeding is an important strategy for corals to acquire nutrients from the water column.
This article was republished in collaboration with Coralscience.org. Please visit Coralscience.org to read more accessible scientific articles about coral reef research.
The marine aquarium hobby is more popular now than ever, inspired by the attractive, colourful appearance of tropical fish, corals and other invertebrates.