No flame intended, but I still think it's a bad idea to bring anything there that can compete with natural fauna.
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I fully understand when we are talking about a non indigenous species that presents a threat to or competes with local fauna but shrooms, come on!!
Here's the reason why:
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I made a very big mistake about 2 years ago. I purchased a small piece of live rock with about 4 small hairy mushrooms on it. I had no idea how big these things could get and how fast they multiply. Any ideas as to how I can get them out of my tank.
Mushroom Thread
If these mushrooms can overgrow someones tank, think what they could do in the ideal conditions of a reef. It's very important that new species not be introduced into waters that are already "spoken for". The result can be disastrous, even if introduction is completely accidental. A new species can go undetected for a long time, and then when it is finally discovered, it can be too late. You may think that a mushroom is a tiny thing that can do no harm, but don't forget that mushrooms spread very quickly, and that they feed on plankton and cover rock very quickly. If a non-native mushroom hit a reef, and established a foothold, it would slowly take over available rock, which would in turn give it the ability to prevent new coral growths, and also feed on any corals attempting to gain a foothold. As it grew larger, it would slowly encrust the bases of corals, and then as they spread out to receive the light, even if they weren't attached to living tissue, they would block sunlight from tissue that was living, slowyly causing corals to die off from the base up. Eventually, it could lead to killing off coral heads. Once a coral head dies, it allows algae to gain a foothold, and once it gains a foothold, it can kill off more corals. One mushroom probably cannot kill a reef, but it can set off a domino effect that can.
Also, check out the ban on Caulerpa sp. in San Diego, California.
Check out zebra mussels in the Great Lakes.
In my own tank, my xenia have already killed off 2 clams by growing onto them and shielding them from the light.
My thoughts are that this bb is about promoting responsible reefing as well as enjoying and learning about the hobby. If we encourage irresponsible reefkeeping, then we will destroy the natural reefs, and then our hobby will no longer exist.
As far as banning cats, did you know that many places do ban cats, and also any rodents including hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs, mice, rats, etc.? You contradict your own point by pointing out that cats kill off native birds. Feral cats are a huge problem on the islands, as they not only eat birds, but lizards, snakes, and anything else that they can catch.
Look around the world and look at some of the projects that are underway trying to eradicate foreign species. There are islands that people are exterminating rats from one by one so that they can reintroduce the native species that have been killed off. In California, they are putting algicides in the water ON THE REEF and covering it with huge tarps to kill off all caulerpa which also kills the corals with their zooxanthellae.
All it takes is one water change to destroy the Hawaiian ecosystem. I'm not saying that it will happen, but that it could. If you had spores in your water from a colony of mushrooms, and you dumped some water from a waterchange into your toilet, it is conceivable that the water would make it's way into some sort of septic system, and out of that system into the ocean before the spores were killed off. One mushroom could cause incredible damage.
I am very sympathetic to the fact that you want some corals that you don't have, that's what everyone wants, myself included, but the margin for error in Hawaii is infinitely smaller than it is here in Illinois, where nothing would survive if it were released into the wild (even then, you never know, zebra mussels are saltwater, and now they have infested the Great Lakes, freshwater). You have paradise at your feet, don't spoil it.
Rereading the thread, humu, I guess this was more directed at fishaholic who seems to think that it's harmless to allow a mushroom to invade a new territory.
Just to make sure this is not interpreted as criticism (well, I guess it is to a certain extent, but not hostile), humu, if you find out that some corals are not illegal, and you want me to ship you some, I'd be more than happy too. Specifically xenia elongata, some lobophytum (devil's hand? or am I mixing them up?), and even some mushrooms! But, please, if you do want some, make sure they're not illegal. Check out my website and you can see which species I am offering you.
[ September 02, 2001: Message edited by: davelin315 ]
[ September 02, 2001: Message edited by: davelin315 ]
[ September 02, 2001: Message edited by: davelin315 ]
