Just had an experience I thought I should share as there seems to be mixed information on the subject of whether or not blue-green algae (or cyanobacteria) is toxic to fish.
I noticed a small patch of cyano on the top of my bubble ladder Saturday night. Since I use RO water in the tank and didn't have any on hand, I turned off the lights to slow down any growth and planned to do a water change the next morning.
I know most fish won't eat the stuff, but I happened to notice a little later that evening that my monster ghost shrimp was on the top of the bubble ladder eating the cyano. I didn't think anything of it and actually sort of thought it might help control it.
The next day when I did my water change, I noticed my big ghost shrimp lying on his back, kicking his legs, dying. He seemed completely healthy and was swimming around prior to when I spotted him eating the cyano. I know he was just a ghost shrimp but I was a little sad since I've had him for quite a while (as ghost shrimp go, anyway) and after surviving the 4 inch nematode erupting from his body he seemed pretty strong.
Obviously, I can't be 100% certain but I believe that the cyano ingestion killed the little guy. In my opinion, it is definitely toxic to the fish. I realize that most fish won't eat it, but since they're breathing the water I suspect that any lengthy exposure would also prove fatal.
I definitely won't wait to do a water change next time I run across the nasty stuff.
I noticed a small patch of cyano on the top of my bubble ladder Saturday night. Since I use RO water in the tank and didn't have any on hand, I turned off the lights to slow down any growth and planned to do a water change the next morning.
I know most fish won't eat the stuff, but I happened to notice a little later that evening that my monster ghost shrimp was on the top of the bubble ladder eating the cyano. I didn't think anything of it and actually sort of thought it might help control it.
The next day when I did my water change, I noticed my big ghost shrimp lying on his back, kicking his legs, dying. He seemed completely healthy and was swimming around prior to when I spotted him eating the cyano. I know he was just a ghost shrimp but I was a little sad since I've had him for quite a while (as ghost shrimp go, anyway) and after surviving the 4 inch nematode erupting from his body he seemed pretty strong.
Obviously, I can't be 100% certain but I believe that the cyano ingestion killed the little guy. In my opinion, it is definitely toxic to the fish. I realize that most fish won't eat it, but since they're breathing the water I suspect that any lengthy exposure would also prove fatal.
I definitely won't wait to do a water change next time I run across the nasty stuff.