Sponge Dominant Mixed Reef

[zen]

I'd like to pass on an anecdote about one of my sponges. It is a yellow encrusting type that had been in my tank for about six months. Everything was going well with it, retaining color and had anchored to a rock. One morning, I was shocked to see it floating at the surface of the tank. I tried to gently press the gas out of it, knowing that I could be ruining its inner structure. Large bubbles came out from where it had anchored to the rock. Now. it is no longer buoyant. The next day, it's floating at the surface again. Instead of removing it, I decided to leave it in the tank. After a few days, it had decayed, resembling a grey cotton ball and settled on a rock. A few days later, it started to encrust on the rock! A couple of days later, it started to turn light yellow! As of this morning, it had encrusted about two inches and is a very pale yellow.

 

[zen]

I read you can put the yellow encrusting sponge in a blender, chop it up it and then reintroduce, it will colonize in your tank. I wonder if that applies to most other sponges.

 

[Weaverjay101]

I read you can put the yellow encrusting sponge in a blender, chop it up it and then reintroduce, it will colonize in your tank. I wonder if that applies to most other sponges.

Almost all sponges are capable of reaggregation. Once I get a sponge to start growing I may remove parts and try this to see if it reaggregates elsewhere in the tank.

 

[Weaverjay101]

Small update. All of the sponges are doing okay. Very slow to grow, but growing. Currently fighting a Cyano outbreak. Reduced lighting down to 6hrs a day and increased refugium to 24hrs a day in hopes of out competing it. Can't use chemiclean as it will also kill the sponges.

 

[VintageReefer]

Small update. All of the sponges are doing okay. Very slow to grow, but growing. Currently fighting a Cyano outbreak. Reduced lighting down to 6hrs a day and increased refugium to 24hrs a day in hopes of out competing it. Can't use chemiclean as it will also kill the sponges.

I have used chemiclean with those blue sponges and no issues

Unsure if other sponge would be affected or not.

 

[Weaverjay101]

 

[Weaverjay101]

Figured i would post an update. Neighbor got rid of his tank so I inherited alot of soft corals and anemone. Sponges are still alive and growing very slowly

 

[ryukendoK]

Figured i would post an update. Neighbor got rid of his tank so I inherited alot of soft corals and anemone. Sponges are still alive and growing very slowly

How are the sponges growing now? Also, in the last post, it looked like the tree sponge has survived--did it?

 

[Weaverjay101]

Haven't really been posting updates lately. My ornamental sponges are alive, but they haven't grown at all. My cryptic sponges, on the other hand, are going crazy. I'll post some pictures of the largest one tonight. The large one has clearly been releasing offspring into the water column as there's a lot of small sponges growing now.

 

[Weaverjay101]

Will post some pictures tonight but I have been working on a self sustained phytoplankton reactor. My premise is that the phytoplankton will consume excess nitrates and phosphates and multiply. A dosing pump slowly doses the phyto/bacteria mixture into the tank.

 

[JTP424]

*Following :)

 

[Weaverjay101]

So I've been experimenting with the red sea reef energy ab+ to see how the sponges would react. They're going crazy! I'll need to be better at posting pictures

 

[mikst]

So I've been experimenting with the red sea reef energy ab+ to see how the sponges would react. They're going crazy! I'll need to be better at posting pictures

I look forward to it. I can't wait to seed my tanks with sponges from a friend.

 

[Weaverjay101]

 

[mikst]

Fantat

Fantastic specimens! I'm so jealous.

 

[Weaverjay101]

The funny part is I don't even know what kind of sponge that is. It showed up on a piece of rock from another reefers tank. Whole rock was exposed to air so I'm not sure that air exposure will kill all sponges.

 

[Tahoe61]

The funny part is I don't even know what kind of sponge that is. It showed up on a piece of rock from another reefers tank. Whole rock was exposed to air so I'm not sure that air exposure will kill all sponges.

It doesn't. It may definitely harm sponges but it's not a death sentence.

 

[mikst]

It doesn't. It may definitely harm sponges but it's not a death sentence.

Great info, thanks.

 

[Weaverjay101]

Trying to figure out what this is. Seems to be some type of anemone. Red base and green dots by the mouth.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Trying to figure out what this is. Seems to be some type of anemone. Red base and green dots by the mouth.

Corallimorph/Ball Anemone (not a true nem; they're related to soft mushroom corals). They're not generally problematic, but they can sometimes reproduce to annoying levels.