Caulerpa taxifolia

[Dusko]

Hi all,
nice to see ya again ;-)

I have a few questions about this very attractive macro-algae, Caulerpa taxifolia.

I grow this algae in my 58 liters (15 G) Nano Reef tank with corals;

This set-up is approx 1 month old. I have read many sites claiming that this algae can negatively effect corals.
Apparently it releases some sort of a toxin?

Does anyone have a first hand experience with this issue ( Tom I hope )??

Many say that it is uneatable to predatory fish, but how come the Emperor Angel have eaten most of it at my Zoo Shops aquarium.?

I really like this algae and would like to grow it. Of course one has to prune it often other wise it will be all around
Does anyone know what is the best way, cut the rhizome or removing "leaves"?

All info greatly appreciated.

Kind regards, Dusko.

 

[Tom Barr]

Most tangs will go after it.
Caulperpene is the chemical they generally point to.

They use Caulperas in refugiums and have extensively in the past and present.
This species is a noxious weed and is banned in the USA.

The species C. mexicana is virtually identical and is also banned in CA, USA.

The issue many neophytes in the marine hobby have with Caulpera is keeping it from melting and going sexual. This stems from a poor understanding about plant growth and the life histories of macro algae.

They suggest to use 24/7 lighting to prevent this.

I suggest adding enough KNO3 to keep the residuals around 5-10ppm as the biomass grows and becomes 2-20X larger and demands far more rates of NO3 to maintain it's health. You can prune often to keep biomass constant and thus the uptake and export more constant.

I just posted some info to this effect on Reefcentral's macro algae forum.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[Dusko]

Thanks Tom,
my NO3 is constantly at 5 ppm. The C. taxifolia is growing very fast (2 new "leaves" in 3 days) so I guess the NO3 is going to sink more, meaning pruning is to be done soon.

This tank is approx 1 month old and I have no visual Hair algae at all (many claimed I will have an algae problem in the beginning), I would say thanks to C. taxifolia.

WHAT TYPE of PRUNING DO YOU SUGGEST TOM?
I have a feeling this might also be a very important factor in growing this algae successfully.
I was thinking to cut the creeping rhizome, since it is becoming way too long.


Regards, Dusko.

EDIT;
I don't see anyone replying to your posts at the reefcentral. I wonder why