I have this red hair algae growing in my tank. I think it is red hair algae. It is a dark red, almost blood red. But it is not slimy. If you look closely at it you can see its feather like structures, and it stays attached to the rock pretty well. And one of the stranger things is it likes high currents, it grows in front of my jets. If someone could help identify this, and more importantly tell me some creature i could get to eat or get rid of it, that would be super. Tank is a reletively new set up. Its been going for a couple of months but i was unhappy with the filter system and have now just finished installing a new one, so we shall see what happens. Anyway any oppinions on the algae would be great.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
red hair algae
- Thread starter gollus
- Start date
To be honest, it's hard to ID this algae without some decent images. There's simply way too many species of algaes, and even though yours may be tinted dark red, it could still be a "green" algae, taxonimically speaking.
How long does the algae extend from the rock? Does it form any observable structures (other then then the feathers) or does it looked like clumped turf algae?
How long does the algae extend from the rock? Does it form any observable structures (other then then the feathers) or does it looked like clumped turf algae?
sorry no digital camera. the algae doesnt grow far off the rock,
Maybe 2 mm. And it doesn't Grow any Structures, it just kind of grows all over the place. From far off it looks like just a red Slime, but if you look closely at it yon can see that it is lots of Strands, just like a green hair algae would look like. The hermit crabs I have in the tank now don't Seem to like it very much, but I Might be wrong.also have snails in the tank, but they dont seem to like it either. Thanks for the tip, I didn't relize there were so many different kinds of algae that could grow in a reef tank.
Maybe 2 mm. And it doesn't Grow any Structures, it just kind of grows all over the place. From far off it looks like just a red Slime, but if you look closely at it yon can see that it is lots of Strands, just like a green hair algae would look like. The hermit crabs I have in the tank now don't Seem to like it very much, but I Might be wrong.also have snails in the tank, but they dont seem to like it either. Thanks for the tip, I didn't relize there were so many different kinds of algae that could grow in a reef tank.
ok thanks i will remember those for my next purchase, do you know what specific kind of conch you have or do you think almost any would eat the algea?
Oh and an update, before this I had not gotten my sump and protein skimmer set up, now that I have and it has been going for a couple of weeks it seems to be taking down the algea, My guess is something IS eating it, but not very fast and now it doesnt have nuitrence needed to keep on growing. Thanks for all of your guy's help.
Oh and an update, before this I had not gotten my sump and protein skimmer set up, now that I have and it has been going for a couple of weeks it seems to be taking down the algea, My guess is something IS eating it, but not very fast and now it doesnt have nuitrence needed to keep on growing. Thanks for all of your guy's help.
When I purchased the conch I thought I was getting a Fighting Conch (Strombus alatus) - that's how it was labeled. In fact, I think it's a Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) as it seems to have grown very large and very fast over the past 6 months or so!...
As for the algae - nutrient control is definitely the other part of the solution - as with any nuisance algae, so the skimmer should help.
HTH
As for the algae - nutrient control is definitely the other part of the solution - as with any nuisance algae, so the skimmer should help.
HTH
Sponsor Reefs
We're a FREE website, and we exist because of hobbyists like YOU who help us run this community.
Click here to sponsor $10:
