Help with Fungus (?) on Submerged Manzanita.

mistern2005

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May 17, 2011
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I have a non-planted tank with manzanita and slate rocks (my zebra pleco tank). I do not fertilize the tank (a 34 gallon corner tank with a 42W CFL bulb for lighting). The manzanita has been in use for approximately 4 years. About a year ago I moved the tank and the manzanita was dried out during the two week process. Once I set up the tank again, I noticed a grey colored, cotton like, patchy fuzz that developed on the non-lit side of the manzanita. My assumption is it is some sort of fungus. The fungus never happened prior to my moving the tank. To keep it at bay I have to scrape it off the manzanita every other week or so, but it keeps returning. None of my clean up crew (amano shrimp, MTS, and LDA025 plecos) touch it. I have no evidence that it is harming any of the tank inhabitants, but I'd like it to get rid of it as it is a nuisance cosmetically and maintenance intensive.

I just cleaned it yesterday so I can post a follow up picture in a week or so.

Any thoughts?
 

Biollante

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Chytrids?

Hi,

Have you got any photos?;)

Texture, feel?

Smell?:eek:

Do you have cats?:rolleyes:

Probably Chytridiomycota, commonly called Chytrids, doesn’t really tell us much, though as it could also be bacterial.

Either way it will go away as the food source depletes. :) Not likely to be harmful to anyone, worse case would be if you had amphibians.:(

Biollante
 
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mistern2005

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I got some photos of a few places that I missed during the last cleaning. The fungus (?) is very easy to remove with a plastic bristled brush. Basically the stuff will appear quite densely along the underside of the manzaita. I do have some tufts of BBA in the photos, that's not what I am talking about. The fungus in question is what is in focus and in the center of both of the following pictures:

IMG_4139.jpg


IMG_4140.jpg


To the touch, it feels like a clump of BBA, similar in feel to a small piece of cotton. It doesn't feel slimy and there is no noticable smell.

I do have two cats, but they can't physically access to the tank, it is covered with a canopy. At least I have never seen them jump on the canopy or access the tank :) I do not have any amphibians living in the tank to my knowledge!

I am curious if the food source is the wood, or if it nutrients in the tank? Either way this has been continuing for about a year. Is the best course of action to wait it out? Is there anything I can do to help eliminate it or at least slow down it's growth?

Thanks for the advice thus far.
 

Biollante

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Jun 21, 2009
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Wood Could Be A Problem

Hi,

I am comfortable saying they are fungi, most probably Chytrid (Chytridiomycota), the most primitive phylum of fungi, sometimes referred to as “water fungus” since the members of this phyla are primarily aquatic.:gw

The greatest danger is to amphibians; in fact a Chytrid is apparently responsible for significant reductions in amphibian populations worldwide since the late 1990’s.:eek:

The wood itself is the most likely food source. :eek:

Best I can recommend is taking the wood out

  • seriously scrubbing with a wire brush (protect your eyes) and
  • removing any loose or rotted wood.
  • Soak in a 20-ppm or so Potassium permanganate solution for an hour or four,
  • rinse thoroughly and soak in filtered water, distilled, DI or RO would be best for a couple of days, a week would be better.
    • Keep your cats away or people that go out in gardens, farms, ponds what have you and do not wash their hands.

No guarantee you will be rid of the fungi, adding bristlenose or other plecos may help on returning the wood to the aquarium.

Good luck…:)

Biollante