ID Please

[Bill B]

Can anyone ID this new growth in the tank. They are 1/4" or less, real color is just a little browner and even though they look like a rigid seed pod (to my eye) they are not as substantial. They are more rubbery and can be pinched through fairly easily. Thanks

[Gonzobob]

sorry, do you mean the entire structure is 1/4" or each 'polyp / piece' is 1/4"?

[Bill B]

each little 'seed' looking thing

[offroadodge]

looks like bubble algae that has turned red or has coraline growth over it. if it is try not to pop them, the more you break the more that will show up. as they get bigger you should probably be able to rock them back and forth and get them off the rock. Nothing to be alarmed about yet, could be caused by to many nutrients(feeding to much etc.) Just keep an eye on it.

[Bill B]

Thanks for the response but it is not the common green bubble algae. If there are others, perhaps. I am amazed I got the close up I did but still you can 'see' it that well. Each little seed/polyp is generally rectangular shaped with rounded corners. Again, hard to discern but there is a white stripe down the middle which almost looks like the two halves had been joined together along that 'seam'. The consistency is similar to bubble algae but more substantial and don't pick off (easily). When pinched through they appear empty, so they may actually be a 'spore' carrier of some sort. They could be some sort of nuisance macro. I definitely do feed too, or have trapped detritus as I frequently have minor outbreaks of cyano.

Thanks

[FarmerTy]

Looks like "red valonia" to me. Red bubble algae. Had them in my old nano tank to plague proportions. Get rid of it fast if it is, otherwise, it'll take over.

Check out this article, about half-way down.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-02/hcj/feature/index.php

-Ty

[Bill B]

It is possible this is some form of bubble algae or a cousin of it. I still don't think we have nailed it though (nor do we have to ). It is not green or red it is brown. It is also not a sphere or round bubble - much more of a tic tac shape, at least on the outside edge - rounded corners and bulging a little more in the middle. The other unusual thing is the 'seam' I am trying to describe. It really looks as if the top and bottom portion of the 'tic tac' have been fused together and this white lines is the 'sealant'. Until I touched it I was really thinking it might be some sort of little clam, that could be pried apart - but as mentioned it is not rigid and the white appears to be coloration and not seperation. I have had green bubble algae and it is rounder, thinner and the bubbles seem to grow off of each other. These 'brown tic tacs' seem to be more individual growths, but growing in small groups.

Bill

[FarmerTy]

Yeah,

I could be wrong but I remember some of my "red valonia" being brown at times and it had a line through it on some of the more mature bubbles but the newer one's were mostly just red. Here's an easy test, try to peel or scrap one of the bubbles off. If it is slimey (basically feels like aloe vera) after you have basically crushed and scraped it, then i'm pretty sure it's red valonia. If not, then we'll all have to keep on trying. :-)

-Ty

[Bill B]

Well we don't 'have to keep trying' but it was not slimey. It had very little texture at all, except kind of rubbery??

Bill