Of all the irksome algae that can take hold in a saltwater aquarium, hair algae probably causes hobbyists more consternation than any other. So named for its hair-like, furry, or feathery appearance, this filamentous algae (for the sake of simplicity,…
Friday Smorgasbord: Insane in the Chromatophores, Shark bait, lionfish derby results, improving reefs via water, and garbage cleanup off Miami reef
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-OVrI9x8Zs[/youtube] We like squids and we like Cypress Hill. Combine the two and you have this visually stunning and scientifically fascinating video. Cephalopods change their appearance through color-changes cells called chromatophores that are neurologically stimulated via electrical signals in the squid.…
Silica Dosing: reef blasphemy or another form of nutrient export?
It has been long held that silica in reef tanks is bad, very, very bad. We avoid beach and play sand like it’s poison because it is believed that silica will cause an undesirable diatom bloom: brown glass, brown gook on rock and substrates, and unhappy reefkeepers. But what if we could control this system and use it to our advantage…say, to increase nutrient export? Let’s take a look at some old data, some new data, and a controversial hypothesis: that dosing silica may increase nutrient export efficiency.
