Brown/Red Algae in sand

[jimmypencil]

I have a red/brown algae that grows mainly on the glass beneath my sand line. I scrape it off when I clean the glass but it always comes back within a week. What is this? Never had this issue in any of my other tanks. This stuff mainly like I said grows on the glass beneath the sand line, not on top of the sand or on the glass.

This is a SPS dominated tank so par is really high around the tank probably 250+ even at the bottom and 500+ at the top of the rock work. I had Dino’s several months ago that took forever to go away. They were in the sand. Is this still Dino’s?

Nitrates 8
Phos .08

 

[code4]

Kind of looks like dinos. There is a long thread on Dinos that explains how to tell if it's Dinos without using a microscope.

 

[Subsea]

I think Cyanobacteria. I have the same red line in my 25 year mature high nutrient filter feeder lagoon.

PS: Incidentally, your tank is absolutely stunning.

Because you mentioned Dinoflagellets & I mentioned Cyanobacteria, which often rear their heads when inorganic nutrients, especially phosphorus & nitrogen, are limited, I have linked this paper:

Discovery of symbiotic nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria in corals - PubMed

Colonies of the Caribbean coral Montastraea cavernosa exhibit a solar-stimulated orange-red fluorescence that is spectrally similar to a variety of fluorescent proteins expressed by corals. The source of this fluorescence is phycoerythrin in unicellular, nonheterocystis, symbiotic cyanobacteria...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

“Colonies of the Caribbean coral Montastraea cavernosa exhibit a solar-stimulated orange-red fluorescence that is spectrally similar to a variety of fluorescent proteins expressed by corals. The source of this fluorescence is phycoerythrin in unicellular, nonheterocystis, symbiotic cyanobacteria within the host cells of the coral. The cyanobacteria coexist with the symbiotic dinoflagellates (zooxanthellae) of the coral and express the nitrogen-fixing enzyme nitrogenase. The presence of this prokaryotic symbiont in a nitrogen-limited zooxanthellate coral suggests that nitrogen fixation may be an important source of this limiting element for the symbiotic association.”

 

[code4]

@jimmypencil I see you are using 4 vortech pumps. How long is your tank? Your corals are so happy and stunning. What program are you using for them? Or did you make your own? I have the same pumps. But only using 2. I am considering adding my two spares after seeing your tank.

Shelley

 

[jimmypencil]

@jimmypencil I see you are using 4 vortech pumps. How long is your tank? Your corals are so happy and stunning. What program are you using for them? Or did you make your own? I have the same pumps. But only using 2. I am considering adding my two spares after seeing your tank.

Shelley

Thank you! It is a 4ft tank (waterbox infinia frag 125). I have the 4 wave makers on random mode at 55% intensity. I have two of them on the right side synced and the 2 on the left side are anti-synced. I’m happy with the flow!