Purple what?

[TMaier]

A friend gave me this piece of wood with purple on it. I cannot identity what it is. This is from a freshwater tank. It is not slimy hairy or smelly. It really reminds me of coralline algae.

Does anyone have any idea what it might be?

 

[Sambo7475]

I can't tell from the size of the picture, but if the wood itself is purple, the only wood I know of is purpleheart. It's a dense wood from Latin America and very resistant to rot. Should be fine in the aquarium.


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[TMaier]

It was on the wood. Not the wood itself. I took it to my lfs and they think it is bacteria. Glad I didn't put it in my tank! Cyanobacteria ?

 

[Fresh2o]

It could be Cyanobacteria/blue green algae/BGA. Looks like some type of reddish slime from the pic.
If you can boil the wood, then it should be safe to use. Treating it with hydrogen peroxide or Excel should kill off the BGA as well.


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[TMaier]

It wasn't slimy. It was more like a skin over the wood. If I took a toothbrush to it it came off. But Rather than take any chances with my tank I returned the wood. Here's a closer pick.


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[Caliban07]

That's cyano. Shame to lose the wood but I don't blame you.


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[Sambo7475]

Good call.


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