bubble algae on corals

[JoJosReef]

I spotted bubble algae growing on the side of my baby trachy. Pulled it out of the tank and took a razor to the algae, but it did catch some of the flesh of the trachy. Some of the bubble popped, so I just rinsed the trachy a ton with tank water before returning it. Didn't get a shot before removal but got one after.

Side without bubble algae:

Side with bubble algae recently removed:

Now I've found it at the base of my pavona. Looks like this may become a prolonged battle. I would try a mithrax crab, but I have brotycladia, pom pom and codium in my DT. Wouldn't an emerald crab eat them up?

Would supergluing over the bubble algae work? Most of my frags are cemented in with reef epoxy, so taking them out for manual removal is likely going to get old fast. Thoughts?

 

[JoJosReef]

Also, the discoloration on one side has me very worried. After losing a hammer to BJD, I'd like to know if BJD is possible on a trachy. It has been over a week since I "operated" on the trachy's bubble algae problem and it doesn't look worse, but maybe a cipro treatment in QT would be prudent?

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Bubble algae isn't the plague. If you aren't able to introduce a natural predator, manually remove what you can and then address the source of the issue, i.e. excess nutrients.
There is also considerable evidence that "popping" a piece of bubble algae does NOT result in a larger outbreak.

Good luck

Edit: you don't need to use something as severe as a razor blade... You can probably reach a lot while everything's still in the tank.

 

[JoJosReef]

Bubble algae isn't the plague. If you aren't able to introduce a natural predator, manually remove what you can and then address the source of the issue, i.e. excess nutrients.
There is also considerable evidence that "popping" a piece of bubble algae does NOT result in a larger outbreak.

Good luck

Edit: you don't need to use something as severe as a razor blade... You can probably reach a lot while everything's still in the tank.

Thanks! I just read about spores reaching maturity once the bubbles reach a certain size, so you may be onto something. I'm going to try a scraper and pipetting at the same time. Mostly I don't want to lose my macros to a crab that should be eating bubbles

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Thanks! I just read about spores reaching maturity once the bubbles reach a certain size, so you may be onto something. I'm going to try a scraper and pipetting at the same time. Mostly I don't want to lose my macros to a crab that should be eating bubbles

I can't tell you what to do, and every tank is different, but I "rescued" a tank that was overrun with bubble algae (and aiptasia, but that's another story); I removed what I could by hand - fingers or tweezers- and popped any others I found that I couldn't remove. Did this for about 3 weeks and it was all gone.
I mean, how's a crab going to eat it if he doesn't pop it first?