Just to add to Timfish's comment above - this is part of one of my quotes I've already suggested reading:
That said, they'll still consume DON from other sources - they just seem to prefer it come from algae.
Yes. I culture a large mixture of phytoplankton and bacteria in a 30 gallon aquarium in my basement. I'm figuring more food is better for sponges. Time will tell if my method works
To a 75gallon?
So would sponges feed off NOPOX?
Yes. Overkill maybe, but my water is always clear by morning so something is eating it all.
I have the pineapple. Both the real type and the sponge typeGiven the sponges naturally host pineapples under the sea, I would start by adding those to your tank. . .
. . .
Hm. I dumped about 200ml into mine over the course of 2 days since the bottle was at to expire.
I was thinking something like this:
I knowI was thinking something like this:
I similarly dose large quantities of phyto where you could not see back glass and in 3 hours, water is crystal clear. The pico critters that eat the phytoplankton are the most likely food source for your ornamental sponges: POC (particulate organic carbon).
How large of a dose do you use and for what size tank? My tank takes on a green cloudiness for a few hours
I have dosed 1G into a 55G tank. My phyto culture was not very dark, which I have found to be less prone to crash.
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Near as I've been able to ascertain, most sponges found on reefs will feed off any labile DOC (aka carbon dosing). In light of how problematic excess labile DOC is for corals it seems reasonable cryptic sponges have saved corals, at least on the short term, by removing it faster than microbes (1000X faster than bacterioplankton) when aquarists add it to thier systems. Unfortunately, one of the problems researchers are uncovering is sponges and algae work together to create positive feedback loops that promote algae dominance. I'm critisized for dropping data bombs but reef ecosystems are very complex and practices are being recommended that research shows is detrimental and will cause chonic to acute problems for corals. So here's some links if your interested in understanding better how reef ecosystens work,
"Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas" This video compliments Rohwer's book of the same title (Paper back is ~$20, Kindle is ~$10), both deal with the conflicting roles of the different types of DOC in reef ecosystems. While there is overlap bewteen his book and the video both have information not covered by the other and together give a broader view of the complex relationships found in reef ecosystems
Changing Seas - Mysterious Microbes
Microbial view of Coral Decline
Nitrogen cycling in hte coral holobiont
BActeria and Sponges
Maintenance of Coral Reef Health (refferences at the end)
Optical Feedback Loop in Colorful Coral Bleaching
DNA Sequencing and the Reef Tank Microbiome
Richard Ross What's up with phosphate"
FYI: DOC can be roughly seperated into three catagories, Labile, Semirefractory and Refractory. Most of the following papaers are looking mainly at Labile DOC. This will raise the hackles on some reefers but keep in mind Labile DOC and Carbon Dosing are synonamous. Jasper deGeoij's work shows cryptic sponges remove labile DOC about a thousand times faster than bacterioplankton. Included are links to some of the research showing what cryptic sponges are doing as well. Also, researchers tend to use DOM (Dissolved Organic Matter) and DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon) interchangebly.
Indirect effects of algae on coral: algae‐mediated, microbe‐induced coral mortality
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Influence of coral and algal exudates on microbially mediated reef metabolism.
Coral DOC improves oxygen (autotrophy), algae DOC reduces oxygen (heterotrophy).
Influence of coral and algal exudates on microbially mediated reef metabolism
Benthic primary producers in tropical reef ecosystems can alter biogeochemical cycling and microbial processes in the surrounding seawater. In order to quantify these influences, we measured rates of photosynthesis, respiration, and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) exudate release by the dominant...
Role of elevated organic carbon levels and microbial activity in coral mortality
Effects of Coral Reef Benthic Primary Producers on Dissolved Organic Carbon and Microbial Activity
Algae releases significantly more DOC into the water than coral.
Effects of Coral Reef Benthic Primary Producers on Dissolved Organic Carbon and Microbial Activity
Benthic primary producers in marine ecosystems may significantly alter biogeochemical cycling and microbial processes in their surrounding environment. To examine these interactions, we studied dissolved organic matter release by dominant benthic taxa and subsequent microbial remineralization in...journals.plos.org
Pathologies and mortality rates caused by organic carbon and nutrient stressors in three Caribbean coral species.
DOC caused coral death but not high nitrates, phosphates or ammonium.
Visualization of oxygen distribution patterns caused by coral and algae
Visualization of oxygen distribution patterns caused by coral and algae
Planar optodes were used to visualize oxygen distribution patterns associated with a coral reef associated green algae (Chaetomorpha sp.) and a hermatypic coral (Favia sp.) separately, as standalone organisms, and placed in close proximity mimicking coral-algal interactions. Oxygen patterns were...
Biological oxygen demand optode analysis of coral reef-associated microbial communities exposed to algal exudates
Exposure to exudates derived from turf algae stimulated higher oxygen drawdown by the coral-associated bacteria.
Biological oxygen demand optode analysis of coral reef-associated microbial communities exposed to algal exudates
Algae-derived dissolved organic matter has been hypothesized to induce mortality of reef building corals. One proposed killing mechanism is a zone of hypoxia created by rapidly growing microbes. To investigate this hypothesis, biological oxygen demand ...
Microbial ecology: Algae feed a shift on coral reefs
Microbial ecology: Algae feed a shift on coral reefs - Nature Microbiology
Human pressures on coral reefs are giving macroalgae a competitive advantage over reef-building corals. These algae support larger, and potentially pathogenic, microbial populations that are metabolically primed for less-efficient, yet faster, carbohydrate remineralization, perpetuating a...
Coral and macroalgal exudates vary in neutral sugar composition and differentially enrich reef bacterioplankton lineages.
Coral and macroalgal exudates vary in neutral sugar composition and differentially enrich reef bacterioplankton lineages - PubMed
Increasing algal cover on tropical reefs worldwide may be maintained through feedbacks whereby algae outcompete coral by altering microbial activity. We hypothesized that algae and coral release compositionally distinct exudates that differentially alter bacterioplankton growth and community...
Sugar enrichment provides evidence for a role of nitrogen fixation in coral bleaching
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Elevated ammonium delays the impairment of the coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis during labile carbon pollution
(here's an argument for maintaining heavy fish loads if you're carbon dosing)
Elevated ammonium delays the impairment of the coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis during labile carbon pollution
Labile dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is a major pollutant in coastal marine environments affected by anthropogenic impacts, and may significantly con…www.sciencedirect.com
Excess labile carbon promotes the expression of virulence factors in coral reef bacterioplankton
Excess labile carbon promotes the expression of virulence factors in coral reef bacterioplankton - The ISME Journal
Coastal pollution and algal cover are increasing on many coral reefs, resulting in higher dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations. High DOC concentrations strongly affect microbial activity in reef waters and select for copiotrophic, often potentially virulent microbial populations. High...
Unseen players shape benthic competition on coral reefs.
Unseen players shape benthic competition on coral reefs - PubMed
Recent work has shown that hydrophilic and hydrophobic organic matter (OM) from algae disrupts the function of the coral holobiont and promotes the invasion of opportunistic pathogens, leading to coral morbidity and mortality. Here we refer to these dynamics as the (3)DAM [dissolved organic...
Allelochemicals Produced by Brown Macroalgae of the Lobophora Genus Are Active against Coral Larvae and Associated Bacteria, Supporting Pathogenic Shifts to Vibrio Dominance.
Allelochemicals Produced by Brown Macroalgae of the Lobophora Genus Are Active against Coral Larvae and Associated Bacteria, Supporting Pathogenic Shifts to Vibrio Dominance - PubMed
Diverse microbial communities associate with coral tissues and mucus, providing important protective and nutritional services, but once disturbed, the microbial equilibrium may shift from a beneficial state to one that is detrimental or pathogenic. Macroalgae (e.g., seaweeds) can physically and...
Macroalgae decrease growth and alter microbial community structure of the reef-building coral, Porites astreoides.
Macroalgae decrease growth and alter microbial community structure of the reef-building coral, Porites astreoides - PubMed
With the continued and unprecedented decline of coral reefs worldwide, evaluating the factors that contribute to coral demise is of critical importance. As coral cover declines, macroalgae are becoming more common on tropical reefs. Interactions between these macroalgae and corals may alter the...
Macroalgal extracts induce bacterial assemblage shifts and sublethal tissue stress in Caribbean corals.
Macroalgal extracts induce bacterial assemblage shifts and sublethal tissue stress in Caribbean corals - PubMed
Benthic macroalgae can be abundant on present-day coral reefs, especially where rates of herbivory are low and/or dissolved nutrients are high. This study investigated the impact of macroalgal extracts on both coral-associated bacterial assemblages and sublethal stress response of corals. Crude...
Biophysical and physiological processes causing oxygen loss from coral reefs.
Global microbialization of coral reefs
DDAM Proven
Global microbialization of coral reefs - Nature Microbiology
Analysis of 60 sites in three ocean basins suggests that overgrowth of fleshy algae on coral reefs supports higher microbial abundances dominated by copiotrophic, potentially pathogenic bacteria via the provision of dissolved inorganic carbon.
Coral Reef Microorganisms in a Changing Climate, Fig 3
Coral Reef Microorganisms in a Changing Climate
Coral reefs are one of the most diverse and productive ecosystems on the planet, yet they have suffered tremendous losses due to anthropogenic disturbances and are predicted to be one of the most adversely affected habitats under future climate change ...
Ecosystem Microbiology of Coral Reefs: Linking Genomic, Metabolomic, and Biogeochemical Dynamics from Animal Symbioses to Reefscape Processes
Because sponges are essential players in the carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycle(s) on reefs here's some links to research done with them.
Element cycling on tropical coral reefs.
This is Jasper de Geoij's ground breaking research on reef sponge finding some species process labile DOC 1000X faster than bacterioplankton. (The introduction is in Dutch but the content is in English.)
Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle
Sponge symbionts and the marine P cycle
Marine sponges are ubiquitous colonizers of shallow, clear-water environments in the oceans (1, 2). Sponges have emerged as significant mediators of biogeochemical fluxes in coastal zones by virtue of respiring organic matter and facilitating both the consumption and release of nutrients (3, 4)...www.pnas.org
Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges
Phosphorus sequestration in the form of polyphosphate by microbial symbionts in marine sponges
Coral reefs are highly productive ecosystems that raise a conundrum called “Darwin’s paradox”: How can high production flourish in low-nutrient conditions? We show here that in three abundant Caribbean sponges, the granules that have been commonly observed in sponge tissue for decades are...
Differential recycling of coral and algal dissolved organic matter via the sponge loop.
Sponges treat DOC from algae differently than DOC from corals
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A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
A Vicious Circle? Altered Carbon and Nutrient Cycling May Explain the Low Resilience of Caribbean Coral Reefs
Coral reefs are economically important ecosystems that have suffered unprecedented losses of corals in the recent past. Why have Caribbean reefs in particu
Surviving in a Marine Desert The Sponge Loop Retains Resources Within Coral Reefs
Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen are quickly processed by sponges and released back into the reef food web in hours as carbon and nitrogen rich detritus.
(PDF) 2013 deGoeij Science Sponge loop
PDF | On Jun 23, 2015, Jasper M de Goeij and others published 2013 deGoeij Science Sponge loop | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate
Natural Diet of Coral-Excavating Sponges Consists Mainly of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC)
Natural Diet of Coral-Excavating Sponges Consists Mainly of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC)
Coral-excavating sponges are the most important bioeroders on Caribbean reefs and increase in abundance throughout the region. This increase is commonly attributed to a concomitant increase in food availability due to eutrophication and pollution. We ...
The Role of Marine Sponges in Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles of COral Reefs and Nearshore Environments.
The role of marine sponges in carbon and nitrogen cycles of coral reef and nearshore environments - ProQuest
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