Cheato and hyposalinity

Jim_S · 05/24/2005, 01:36 AM

I took all the chaeto out of my fuge for a hypo treatment. I was wondering if I can put it back during this treatment, or will the low salinity kill the plant? My salinity right now is 1.009. Thanks. Jim

fishmaster#1 · 05/24/2005, 03:40 AM

If I had to guess I would say Hell no way too low

bluenassarius · 05/24/2005, 07:51 AM

jim,
my brother has one of his experiment tanks in low salinity and all of his macro's survived even some of the inverts. can't say the same for his corals. hth

sam

Samala · 05/24/2005, 08:42 AM

Ulva and Enteromorpha variants, as well as many of the Gracilaria variants, should take hyposalinity okay. Keep in mind that's anecdoctal evidence, but there are several different species of macro that I collect in the Bay systems of the Delaware and Chesapeake in both of their northern extremes that are very low salinity, especially this time of year, 1.010-1.019 as my typical readings. Likewise, there are lots of macros in the IRL in Florida that must survive low salinity extremes for weeks if not months during the rainy season.

However.. I will venture to say that they will need the same adaptive approach to hypo you would use on all the other living things in the tank. Some may be tough enough to go straight into hypo.. but I would err on the side of patience and allow them to slowly acclimate to it.

Cant say much for the Chaeto found in most of the hobby.. maybe I would split up the ball you have and see if some of it will take the treatment and go from there. Then, let us know!

>Sarah

Jim_S · 05/24/2005, 01:03 PM

Thanks for all the replies. I'll give it s shot. Should I try to acclimate it the same way I would do a fish? Jim

kmk2307 · 05/24/2005, 10:29 PM

Acclimating the chaeto couldn't hurt but I don't know if it will help either. I'm pretty sure it would be just fine at that salinity. Try it with a small clump and if it looks like it is unhappy get it out of there before it dies and pollutes the water. Please keep us posted on how it works out.

Kevin

Jim_S · 05/25/2005, 12:57 AM

I went to add the chateo today but discoved my fuge light burned out. I'll pick up a new bulb tomorrow, then add the macro. I'll also take some photos during the week and post them. Thanks again for replying. Jim

Samala · 05/25/2005, 10:30 AM

No no Jim, thank you for taking on the assignment! Pics will be a big help I think. I would acclimate as you would with fish.. if not drip then just slowly bring them down to the right salinity level with RO/DI. A few notches every few hours should be just fine. I acclimate macro's from the Bay systems down to freshwater over a 24 hour period.. let them sit in a freshwater dip for another half day beyond that.. and then bring them back to full salinity for my tanks through another 24 hours. I havent lost any Graciliaria, seagrass, Ulva or Enteromorpha yet... but you never know what they'll like. And I baby them a lot when they go into the tank because I'm more into macros than the typical reefer.

>Sarah

LegoZ81 · 05/26/2005, 08:56 AM

I know I still have some surviving (although EXTREMELY not happy) Calurpa Prolifa in my goldfish tank. I think it is hanging in there somehow on the fact that Nitrate is sitting somewhere ~ 60ppm. I also hold pH at 8.4 in the freshwater tank with Baking Soda.
IT has been ther for 2.5weeks now. the edges are yellow but the center of the leaves are VERY dark green...
I think I may start using water from the gold tank to start up a Macro culture tank.

kmk2307 · 05/30/2005, 02:21 PM

LegoZ81,

Has the caulerpa grown at all since you put it in freshwater? I think an interesting experiment now would be to re-plant it in saltwater and see if grows again. It may already be dead. Have the goldfish eaten any of it? FWIW I tried to feed a fw pleco dictyota (which I assumed was nontoxic) and it died. Caulerpa is known to be toxic.

Kevin

LegoZ81 · 05/30/2005, 09:35 PM

dunno I will throw it in my calurpa "grow out" tank in the back and see what it does... I don't need to be killing my gold with it, if "he" eats it.

Jim_S · 06/04/2005, 12:24 AM

Well, it looks like all is well with the cheato in 1.009 salinity. Its been in there a week now and now grey parts yet. Here are some pics. I will post some more as time goes by.

Reef tank fuge. 25 gallon (filled with chaeto). The salinity is normal in this tank. This stuff grows like mad in this system.

Here is are some shots of it in my FOWLR fuge. I just ripped some out of the above fuge and then acclimated it to my big tank's low salinity.

eleodes · 06/04/2005, 12:49 AM

excuse me, but i'm ignorant. what is the objective for subjecting macroalagae to hyposalinity for captive system and wild-gathered material? is it to kill off pest organisms?

Jim_S · 06/04/2005, 01:49 AM

The hypo treatment is not for the algae. I'm running hypo on my FOWLR for my Sohal Tang. I took all the chaeto out because I wasn't sure if it would die. Now I've put some back in to see if it will survive. The only filtration in the tank is LR, my skimmer and my macro. So you can see why I want to put it back into the system.

Jim

billsreef · 06/05/2005, 10:35 PM

Interesting results so far. Be sure and keep us updated

Samala · 06/05/2005, 10:38 PM

Um, I do a freshwater dip on macroalgae I collect from the wild when I dont want to introduce pest species.. namely hydroids from my viewpoint. I try to exclude the cool inverts that come with it but some have to be taken off with a freshwater dip. There are these little inverts that remind me strongly of freshwater damsel and mayfly larvae that stick like superglue to macro from the wild. Evil looking little things, I didnt trust them in my tank.

Jim this experiment is going pretty well. My only real question is: will the Chaeto in hyposalinity just hold out, or will it grow in hypo treatment? Still good to know.

>Sarah

Jim_S · 06/06/2005, 04:05 PM

billsreef, I will keep everyone posted.

Samala, I am wondering the same thing. I don't know how much it will grow in this water, maybe not at all. I've been watching it to see if there is going to be any growth. The treatment will only last 3 more weeks, so I will see what the results will be (if any) by then.

Jim

Jim_S · 06/29/2005, 12:06 AM

Well, the hypo treatment has ended. The chaeto survived; however, it did not grow much (maybe not at all) and became brittle. I will wait to see if it is able to recover now that the salinity is at a normal level.

Jim

billsreef · 06/29/2005, 09:40 PM

Glad to hear it survived. Be waiting to hear about the growth post hypo

oh207 · 02/19/2018, 10:35 PM

I've been searching online for evidence if chaeto will grow in hyposalinity and this 13 year old thread kept coming up in all search results. I figure I'll bump it up and add some new info that I found.

I've a 30g QT that I run year round and occasionally break it down 2 times a year for a full cleaning.

I have a CPR aquafuge and was thinking of adding it to the QT tank to grow chaeto. The QT is at hypo (1.008) most of the time.

In addition to this thread, I found the 2 articles below which were very helpful. The first is straight forward (see excerpt below) and it lists the second link as a reference. The second is a scientific paper supporting the growth of chaeto in hyposalinity.

Chaetomorpha in Hyposalinity
http://thebrackishtank.tumblr.com/po...uarium-for-any

Quote:

Chaeto is a real winner as far as ornamental algae choices go. It’s hardy, grows quickly, and does not have any issues with ruining water quality that Caulerpa has. Interestingly enough, Chaetomorpha is truly euryhaline and is found in the wild in specific gravity from 1.002 to 1.069 (almost three times the salinity of the ocean!). Anecdotal evidence suggests that Chaeto may even do well in freshwater conditions, but I’d keep an open mind here. If you do keep yours in freshwater and yours fails to thrive even with adequate lighting and nutrients, you might do well to consider adding marine salt mix to the tank.

High tolerance of Chaetomorpha sp. to salinity and water temperature enables survival and growth in stagnant waters of central Thailand
https://link.springer.com/article/10...071-014-0092-4

Link to pdf
https://link.springer.com/content/pd...014-0092-4.pdf

Michael Hoaster · 02/22/2018, 12:48 AM

I hadn't seen this thread. Thanks, oh207!

I treated my tank with hypo for six weeks. The chaeto hung in there pretty well, but wasn't pretty. Ulva did well too. All my other macros died back, but recovered after hypo.

Louis Z · 03/03/2018, 10:28 AM

Good to know , I have wondered about chaetomorpha survivability also

manfrog · 05/08/2018, 11:44 PM

De chaeto does the greato with the hypo.... (salinity dat is).
Done noticed dee Ulva copes as well.

heuerfan · 06/13/2019, 12:44 PM

Thanks for the update i was just wondering about this also. I want to put some in my fowlr that runs low salinity.

05/24/2005, 07:51 AM	#3
bluenassarius retired algae slanger Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Sac ra men to! Posts: 4,883	jim, my brother has one of his experiment tanks in low salinity and all of his macro's survived even some of the inverts. can't say the same for his corals. hth sam __________________ half man / half algae ... true story Current Tank Info: tankless, on hiatus until further notice

05/24/2005, 08:42 AM	#4
Samala Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 2,930	Ulva and Enteromorpha variants, as well as many of the Gracilaria variants, should take hyposalinity okay. Keep in mind that's anecdoctal evidence, but there are several different species of macro that I collect in the Bay systems of the Delaware and Chesapeake in both of their northern extremes that are very low salinity, especially this time of year, 1.010-1.019 as my typical readings. Likewise, there are lots of macros in the IRL in Florida that must survive low salinity extremes for weeks if not months during the rainy season. However.. I will venture to say that they will need the same adaptive approach to hypo you would use on all the other living things in the tank. Some may be tough enough to go straight into hypo.. but I would err on the side of patience and allow them to slowly acclimate to it. Cant say much for the Chaeto found in most of the hobby.. maybe I would split up the ball you have and see if some of it will take the treatment and go from there. Then, let us know! >Sarah __________________ "Seaweed is cool, seaweed is fun, it makes its food from the rays of the sun!"

05/24/2005, 01:03 PM	#5
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	Thanks for all the replies. I'll give it s shot. Should I try to acclimate it the same way I would do a fish? Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

05/25/2005, 12:57 AM	#7
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	I went to add the chateo today but discoved my fuge light burned out. I'll pick up a new bulb tomorrow, then add the macro. I'll also take some photos during the week and post them. Thanks again for replying. Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

05/25/2005, 10:30 AM	#8
Samala Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 2,930	No no Jim, thank you for taking on the assignment! Pics will be a big help I think. I would acclimate as you would with fish.. if not drip then just slowly bring them down to the right salinity level with RO/DI. A few notches every few hours should be just fine. I acclimate macro's from the Bay systems down to freshwater over a 24 hour period.. let them sit in a freshwater dip for another half day beyond that.. and then bring them back to full salinity for my tanks through another 24 hours. I havent lost any Graciliaria, seagrass, Ulva or Enteromorpha yet... but you never know what they'll like. And I baby them a lot when they go into the tank because I'm more into macros than the typical reefer. >Sarah __________________ "Seaweed is cool, seaweed is fun, it makes its food from the rays of the sun!"

05/24/2005, 01:36 AM	#1
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	Cheato and hyposalinity I took all the chaeto out of my fuge for a hypo treatment. I was wondering if I can put it back during this treatment, or will the low salinity kill the plant? My salinity right now is 1.009. Thanks. Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

05/24/2005, 03:40 AM	#2
fishmaster#1 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Elgin IL Posts: 91	If I had to guess I would say Hell no way too low

05/24/2005, 10:29 PM	#6
kmk2307 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Tuscaloosa, AL Posts: 5,110	Acclimating the chaeto couldn't hurt but I don't know if it will help either. I'm pretty sure it would be just fine at that salinity. Try it with a small clump and if it looks like it is unhappy get it out of there before it dies and pollutes the water. Please keep us posted on how it works out. Kevin

05/26/2005, 08:56 AM	#9
LegoZ81 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Central Illinois Posts: 779	I know I still have some surviving (although EXTREMELY not happy) Calurpa Prolifa in my goldfish tank. I think it is hanging in there somehow on the fact that Nitrate is sitting somewhere ~ 60ppm. I also hold pH at 8.4 in the freshwater tank with Baking Soda. IT has been ther for 2.5weeks now. the edges are yellow but the center of the leaves are VERY dark green... I think I may start using water from the gold tank to start up a Macro culture tank.

05/30/2005, 02:21 PM	#10
kmk2307 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Tuscaloosa, AL Posts: 5,110	LegoZ81, Has the caulerpa grown at all since you put it in freshwater? I think an interesting experiment now would be to re-plant it in saltwater and see if grows again. It may already be dead. Have the goldfish eaten any of it? FWIW I tried to feed a fw pleco dictyota (which I assumed was nontoxic) and it died. Caulerpa is known to be toxic. Kevin

05/30/2005, 09:35 PM	#11
LegoZ81 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Central Illinois Posts: 779	dunno I will throw it in my calurpa "grow out" tank in the back and see what it does... I don't need to be killing my gold with it, if "he" eats it.

06/04/2005, 12:24 AM	#12
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	Well, it looks like all is well with the cheato in 1.009 salinity. Its been in there a week now and now grey parts yet. Here are some pics. I will post some more as time goes by. Reef tank fuge. 25 gallon (filled with chaeto). The salinity is normal in this tank. This stuff grows like mad in this system. Here is are some shots of it in my FOWLR fuge. I just ripped some out of the above fuge and then acclimated it to my big tank's low salinity. __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

06/04/2005, 12:49 AM	#13
eleodes Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 361	excuse me, but i'm ignorant. what is the objective for subjecting macroalagae to hyposalinity for captive system and wild-gathered material? is it to kill off pest organisms?

06/04/2005, 01:49 AM	#14
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	The hypo treatment is not for the algae. I'm running hypo on my FOWLR for my Sohal Tang. I took all the chaeto out because I wasn't sure if it would die. Now I've put some back in to see if it will survive. The only filtration in the tank is LR, my skimmer and my macro. So you can see why I want to put it back into the system. Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

06/05/2005, 10:35 PM	#15
billsreef Moderator 10 & Over Club Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Long Island, NY/North Miami Posts: 36,538	Interesting results so far. Be sure and keep us updated __________________ Bill "LOL, well I have no brain apparently. " - dc (Debi) Current Tank Info: Far too many tanks according to my wife, LOL.

06/05/2005, 10:38 PM	#16
Samala Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 2,930	Um, I do a freshwater dip on macroalgae I collect from the wild when I dont want to introduce pest species.. namely hydroids from my viewpoint. I try to exclude the cool inverts that come with it but some have to be taken off with a freshwater dip. There are these little inverts that remind me strongly of freshwater damsel and mayfly larvae that stick like superglue to macro from the wild. Evil looking little things, I didnt trust them in my tank. Jim this experiment is going pretty well. My only real question is: will the Chaeto in hyposalinity just hold out, or will it grow in hypo treatment? Still good to know. >Sarah __________________ "Seaweed is cool, seaweed is fun, it makes its food from the rays of the sun!"

06/06/2005, 04:05 PM	#17
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	billsreef, I will keep everyone posted. Samala, I am wondering the same thing. I don't know how much it will grow in this water, maybe not at all. I've been watching it to see if there is going to be any growth. The treatment will only last 3 more weeks, so I will see what the results will be (if any) by then. Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

06/29/2005, 12:06 AM	#18
Jim_S Timo Boll Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 5,333	Well, the hypo treatment has ended. The chaeto survived; however, it did not grow much (maybe not at all) and became brittle. I will wait to see if it is able to recover now that the salinity is at a normal level. Jim __________________ We will survive in this world of competition, shooting guns and our ammunition... Bradley Nowell Current Tank Info: We're recreating the ocean in our livings rooms. With that said, I've had some ups and downs.

06/29/2005, 09:40 PM	#19
billsreef Moderator 10 & Over Club Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Long Island, NY/North Miami Posts: 36,538	Glad to hear it survived. Be waiting to hear about the growth post hypo __________________ Bill "LOL, well I have no brain apparently. " - dc (Debi) Current Tank Info: Far too many tanks according to my wife, LOL.

02/22/2018, 12:48 AM	#21
Michael Hoaster Registered Seaweedist Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 5,807	I hadn't seen this thread. Thanks, oh207! I treated my tank with hypo for six weeks. The chaeto hung in there pretty well, but wasn't pretty. Ulva did well too. All my other macros died back, but recovered after hypo. __________________ As many naturalists and environmentalists have suggested, we should set aside our arrogance, our desire to conquer and control everything, and walk hand in hand with Mother Nature. -Walter Adey Current Tank Info: 180g Seagrass Sandbar Lagoon, START DATE November 28, 2018

03/03/2018, 10:28 AM	#22
Louis Z Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Montgomery Posts: 1,257	Good to know , I have wondered about chaetomorpha survivability also

05/08/2018, 11:44 PM	#23
manfrog Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2017 Location: Satsuma, AL Posts: 56	Chaeto is Greato De chaeto does the greato with the hypo.... (salinity dat is). Done noticed dee Ulva copes as well.

06/13/2019, 12:44 PM	#24
heuerfan Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: New Hyde Park Posts: 1,249	Thanks for the update i was just wondering about this also. I want to put some in my fowlr that runs low salinity.