Help* brown cotton growing around my zoas

[Mperry622]

I've not added any new zoanthids on to this rock, about 4 days ago I noticed some brown cotton stuff around my green pallies. Today I noticed it has significantly spread the zoas mostly are open and don't seem to care. From everything I'm reading I'm here hydrogen peroxide dip is where it's at I'm just scared to take that rock out and dip it if it's not something bad... It's hard to get a picture so I uploaded a video I hope it helps anyone please help..

brown cotton around zoanthids

youtube.com

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

My guess is either a really bad case of cyano, or an invasive sponge.

It is kind of hard to see, but that first pic makes it look like it may be an invasive sponge species. Normally, sponges are harmless filter feeders, but sometimes people get a sponge that spreads like crazy. As long as the corals keep opening and the sponge doesn't grow over the top/polyps of the coral, the sponge won't hurt the corals, but it may take up a lot of real estate in the tank. In bad cases, however, the sponge grows over the corals and smothers them. So, usually, with invasive sponges, the looming threat of the possibility of the sponge smothering corals in the future prompts people to remove the sponge regardless of if it's a harmful sponge or not.

Personally, with what I see in the pics you shared, assuming this is a sponge, I would feel pretty nervous about it spreading that intensively (especially since it seems to have climbed as high as it can on the zoa stalks there short of smothering the zoas). So, you can watch how it does for the next few days and it may be fine (though you'd likely also run the risk of losing some zoas), or you can try and remove it.

Generally speaking, the easiest way to remove sponges is to scrape them off (the best recommendation I've seen for this is to scrape it off and suction it out).

Other suggestions include exposing the sponge to air (obviously not a guaranteed solution, and definitely not viable for this situation); hydrogen peroxide dipping the sponge (again, not viable here); injecting the sponge with hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, boiling water, or air; microbubbles in the display; and a few more. Predation is not usually a good solution for this issue, and I explain why below:

Yeah, unfortunately some sponges will come back basically as long as there's a piece of it left (which is why I like the recommendation to suction out as much as you can, but even that's not foolproof), so removal isn't always easy. In cases like that, the only advice I have (which may not be terribly helpful) is to try and find the cause so you can deal with the root of the problem:

Most sponges do, yes. If there’s a high level of silicates and a sufficient amount of food for the sponges (including things like Dissolved Organic Matter, bacteria, phytoplankton, and some Particulate Organic Matter), then you may see a population boom with sponges.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Also, just a note, under the frag plug between the green palys on the left and zoas on the right in that first pic, you have some vermetid snail tubes (there seem to be a few visible in third pic as well):

It looks like it may be vermetid snails - they're generally considered pests, as they reportedly sometimes irritate corals. However, it likely depends on the coral and the vermetid species, as some people have pics of their corals growing over the vermetids and doing just fine.

 

[Mperry622]

Thanks for your input. I am going to hold off dipping. My nitrates run high in the 10's but everything in the tank is beautiful. Just got me on the brown cotton and it's spreading, fast

 

[Mperry622]

Thanks for your input. I am going to hold off dipping. My nitrates run high in the 10's but everything in the tank is beautiful. Just got me on the brown cotton and it's spreading, fast

Yeah I've given up on fighting vermitted snails... Just part of my reef.. new to the hobby and buying live Rock was so dumb. My overflow baffle is full of aptasia and I've got vermitted snails on every Rock

not letting it get me down
Just hit a year