what is growing in my hob

poo-tang · #1 08/19/2007, 12:36 PM

i got a bunch of white sponge looking things...kinda stringy growing in my hob filter. tank is about 9 months old...are the sponges or tunicates or what? i couldn't find them a pic of them and cannot post one. is this a good thing? just a little curious as to what is happening in my tank.

ACBlinky · #2 08/19/2007, 01:45 PM

Without a picture it's very hard to even guess, but if they look like sponges, they very well may be. To me sponges are neither 'good' nor 'bad'. They consume minute particles from the water column and I assume they must excrete waste, so they're just one more thing eating and pooping in the tank. I'm a fan of having as diverse a population of critters as possible, so if they're not harming anything why not leave them in place?

Hormigaquatica · #3 08/19/2007, 01:46 PM

Check out this link, see if this is it maybe.
http://www.melevsreef.com/id/scypha.html

oysterxfast5 · #4 08/19/2007, 02:39 PM

My back wall has about a million of those hormigaqutica. How do they get there. Hitchhikers of a sort. i didn't have to many and i rubbed them off the wall and now there is a bunch in the back right corner so i just leave it alone. Makes it look dirty but i don't want more to grow. any thing that might eat them.

Hormigaquatica · #5 08/19/2007, 02:46 PM

They do come in as hitchikers on the rock, and spread pretty easily. They are harmless filter feeders; usually crop up in places where a lot of debris passes by (often behind liverock or around filters). You can brush them off if you dont like em, but chances are good that theyll grow right back. Try increasing the water flow in that area- the hard flow from a powerhead seems to discourage their growth.

As far as what eats them, angels certainly will. Ive seen tangs and wrasses pick at them, as well as puffers. Im not aware of any animals in the hobby that specifically target those as a food source though, sorry.