Algae identification

[libertybelle]

Hey all, I have some of what I think is bacopa Myrio growing in the back of my tank and some kind of algae seems to be taking over that plant specifically. Frankly it is kind of pretty and since my tank is mostly algae eaters and my Pygmy cories love resting on it I was tempted to just leave it ... but it grows kinda like brush algae and I don’t really want to leave a ton of that in there. The thing is it doesn’t look like bba. It’s a light, bright green fuzz rather than the darker blackish tufts.

What kind of algae do you think it is and do you think it is something my RCS/amanos or otos are eating or is it some variety of beard algae and mostly just ‘useful’ as a Cory bed. I’m not anti algae in this tank. With so many algae eaters I’m happy to leave it as a source of food (in fact I leave my photoperiod long for the sake of oto feeding!) but if it’s some kind of brush algae that is damaging my plant without even being good for any tank inhabitants to eat I’ll just take out the ‘infected’ portions of the stems.

(Sorry the pictures aren’t great; I was trying to photograph past a bunch of other plants; this one is a little burried in the back.)

 

[Caliban07]

Looks like Cyanobacteria and green dust algae. I made suggestions in another one of your posts on how I control algae. [emoji846]

 

[libertybelle]

Did you? I asked about macro testing/ dosing in another thread. The picture is taken against the back wall where I don’t clean the glass for the nerites/ otos. It’s dust/ gsa on the glass for sure and that’s fine with me. Makes my algae eaters happy.

On the plant itself is what I was worried about and it doesn’t look like Cyano in person. After posting this I did some more searching in google image search and I think I answered my own question. Looks exactly like pictures of green fuzz algae to me.

I’m not sure if it is only on a few stems of this one plant because that plant is just not doing well or maybe just because the algae got a head start in the tank at the store. But every time I consider pruning or taking it out to dip it I see a Cory resting on it and I feel bad... ? the whole school of them seem to have set up that fuzzy tuft as base camp.

Regarding macro dosing in my other thread, I am still trying to figure out how much fertilization this tank needs. I’d like to add more livestock so bioload balances more nicely with the plants macro needs but I don’t want to add anything that will make a meal of my shrimp so for the moment it’s too understocked / overplanted to get the macros it needs from stock / fish food.

I’ve just been trying to keep nitrate/phosphate above zero. I know most people dose things much higher levels but I guess my logic is that if it’s still at a measurable level in the tank that is the extra nutrients that the plants haven’t used up yet.

I’m not concerned with maximizing growth in this tank; just finding a balance.

 

[libertybelle]

(I mean come on, how can I say ‘I'm pruning away your bed’ to these guys....)

 

[Delapool]

Lol - you could try decreasing light time / intensity and see if that slows it down. I find that helps for GSA on glass or slow-growing plants as well.

 

[libertybelle]

I pruned back all but one of the overtaken stems because I was afraid I would lose the plant if I let it take over entirely. The bottom portion of the stem was fine; the algae was taking over the top growth closest to the lights.

All my corys and one of my otos are resting on the remaining one fuzzy stem this evening. And my oto seems to be eating/ foraging in it. I didn’t think they went after the fuzzy stuff. Could explain why they’re so plump despite ignoring anything I put in the tank.

If fish could speak they’d be saying don’t you dare! So I think I’m gunna leave it for them. At least until the stem starts dying back.

I have water lettuce in a ring shading the part of my tank where its mostly anubius; maybe I should let the water lettuce grow over this plant as well since the algae seems to be using the bright light better than it is.