Just Because it's Green Doesn't Mean it's Phyto

Eldredge

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 2, 2010
Messages
1,551
Reaction score
605
Location
Eagle, Idaho
Rating - 100%
8   0   0
I lost a culture this week, and I thought it might be helpful to post a picture and a bit of a warning/caution.

To the untrained eye, this culture might look green and healthy, but in reality it has almost no phyto. Examined under the microscope, it is actually something that looks like pieces of string. I would guess that it is some type of bacteria or fungus that grows very quickly and overpowered the phyto. I don't know what harm or good it would do to a system, but it certainly isn't phyto (and, I'm not going to dose it to find out).

Over the years, I have seen something like this happen on occasion. The takeaway should be that it is important to closely monitor cultures to make sure that they really are healthy phytoplankton. I have even heard of a large professional aquarium that thought they were growing phytoplankton but they were actually growing (and dosing) an unknown organism that was not phyto. So remember, even if it is green, it might not be phyto.

image0 (002).jpeg
 

Formulator

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 14, 2024
Messages
2,462
Reaction score
2,556
Location
Saint Louis, MO, USA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Thank you. As I’m writing this, I’m walking to the basement to stick some phyto under the microscope :face-with-tears-of-joy: … I’ve been curious how my culture seems to be thriving when I haven’t harvested in 3 weeks just out of laziness. I wonder if I’m growing something else!
 

Reefer Matt

Reef Cave Dweller
View Badges
Joined
May 15, 2021
Messages
6,862
Reaction score
31,054
Location
Michigan
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I learned that the hard way too when I was culturing my own. I got a culture from someone that had no phyto in it but was green. I assumed that’s what it looked like until I ordered a good starter culture. After that I would verify each batch before I stored them in the fridge. Eventually I quit using phyto, but it is cool to grow your own and learn about it.
 
OP
OP
Eldredge

Eldredge

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 2, 2010
Messages
1,551
Reaction score
605
Location
Eagle, Idaho
Rating - 100%
8   0   0
Thank you. As I’m writing this, I’m walking to the basement to stick some phyto under the microscope :face-with-tears-of-joy: … I’ve been curious how my culture seems to be thriving when I haven’t harvested in 3 weeks just out of laziness. I wonder if I’m growing something else!

Good luck! Let us know what you find.
 
OP
OP
Eldredge

Eldredge

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 2, 2010
Messages
1,551
Reaction score
605
Location
Eagle, Idaho
Rating - 100%
8   0   0
I learned that the hard way too when I was culturing my own. I got a culture from someone that had no phyto in it but was green. I assumed that’s what it looked like until I ordered a good starter culture. After that I would verify each batch before I stored them in the fridge. Eventually I quit using phyto, but it is cool to grow your own and learn about it.

Yes, that's a good point - it does look a little different than healthy phyto. I knew there was a problem before I scoped it. Without some experience, it's hard to see when there is a problem.
 

TOP 10 Trending Threads

HOW ARE YOUR CORALS DOING TODAY? HONEST ANSWERS ONLY!

  • Everything seems to be doing great!

    Votes: 43 21.0%
  • Almost everything is doing good!

    Votes: 67 32.7%
  • Some are doing good, others not so much...

    Votes: 50 24.4%
  • They're okay, I guess.

    Votes: 20 9.8%
  • They're not doing too well right now.

    Votes: 15 7.3%
  • Not good at all...

    Votes: 3 1.5%
  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 7 3.4%
Back
Top