Care of Blue Sponge coral

[Maddog58]

I was at the lps and saw a large blue sponge coral and i am looking for info on it, How to care for it, feed it, what it needs to flourish, etc.

Thanks in advance for your help

[Monkeyfish]

Never heard of a "blue sponge coral"... is this a coral, a sponge or a tunicate?

Sponges are filter feeders that are difficult to keep. They need to be in an area where there is a good amount of flow and minimal light so algae will not grow on them.

[Maddog58]

They called it a sponge at the store so i would think that it is a sponge. Is there a way to feed a sponge? or just hope there is enough food floating?

[Mrs. Slide_Ice]

We've had a blue sponge for two years now and he is doing great. We have fragged it several times too. Sponges are filter feeders and need good water flow, but air must never touch them or they will die. We also supplement with DT's phytoplankton twice a week and turn the skimmer off for a few hours so the corals and sponges can feed.

Here's a recent photo of him



If you have any other questions feel free to post here or pm me.

Hope this helps,

Jenny

[michaelg]

Some sponges will do quite well in captivity. Most that are collected, unfortunately do not fare well (red ball and orange tree, etc). Many of the sponges end up growing off live rock. Not all are air sensative, some are extremely sensative. I do tend to find that feeding phytoplankton regularily supports their growth. Also need to look at the animals you have and think it they will find the sponge a treat.

[percula99]

Hi. I am finding this thread a little late, but I have a related question. I just bought a small piece of blue sponge. I have read it does better in low light because it is a sponge, and that's where they grow. I have also read they do better in strong light. Mrs. Slide_Ice, that is a beautiful piece you have. What water and light conditions do you keep yours in? Thanks in advance.

[Mrs. Slide_Ice]

The colony in the picture is under pc lighting, we also have a frag of that colony in our other tank under metal halide lighting. There are some sponges that do require some lighting, and others don't need any at all. I do not think that light will hurt them, it is just not necessary for all sponges. From what I have read, blue sponges don't require any lighting but as you can see, our sponge grows great in the light as well.

Make sure the sponge is placed where it gets a decent amount of water flow so that it can filter its food out of the water, and keep air bubbles away. I would supplement with phytoplankton reqularly.

Hope this helps,

Jenny

[percula99]

Thanks for the reply Jenny. Mine is in a high light, low flow area. From what you said, I think I will move it to a lower light, higher flow area and see how it does. Thanks for the info.

[Monkeyfish]

I believe that the light in and of itself is irrelevant when it comes to the growth of sponges. Rather, it's the fact that light can lead to algae which will grow on the sponge resulting in the sponge being stunted or even killed because it will not be able to feed. Low light and high flow = less algae.

[Crusty Old Shellback]

I have several different sponges growing in my tank. Most came in as hitchhickers. I have yellows, pinks, purples and white. Most are encrusting sponges. I have also kept the blue sponge as well. I've had both blue and the yellow sponges grow in both light and dark places in my tank. I do not feed the filter feeders in my tank directly but will on occasion add some filter feeder food to the water. Not on a regular basis.

As for their care, good wate flow is a must to get food to them. As for the air thing. I do a 50% water change on my tanks when I change water. My sponges and corals are exposed to the open air for about 1/2 hour during this time. That's including SPS and LPS corals. As long as you do not touch or bother the sponge, it will be fine. It's when you poke/prod at it out of the water that it may get an air bubble insid of it and die.

The blue sponges however seem more suscetible to being out of the water than others so I'd try to keep it in the wate during water changes. Another thing that I have found is that they are also susceptable to amoina spikes while other sponges are not. Don't ask how I found this one out.

With little effort on your part, they should grow just fine. I'm always finding new sponges growing in my tank where they weren't before all the time. It adds a nice little splash of color here and there. Good luck.

[Mrs. Slide_Ice]

Yes, the blue sponge is particularly sensitive to air, if air touches it, it dies. Hitchhiker sponges seem to much more hardy, as you said.

Another important point is that when a blue sponge dies, it releases toxins into the water which can wipe out a tank, so if it starts bleaching from the base up then keep a close eye on it, you might need to yank it. On the other hand, our sponge will bleach on the upper branches every once in a while (or when the water flow changes maybe) and this seems to just be its way of restructuring itself to better filter the water, so it is nothing to worry about.

I love the splash of color sponges bring too

Good luck

Jenny

[bertoni]

Some sponges have photosynthetic symbionts, and thus need light. Most don't. Light won't directly harm them, but in some cases it allows algae to overgrow and kill them. That's typical of deepwater sponges, since they don't face photosynthetic competitors in their natural environment.