Everything you need to know about Cyanobacteria

[Tamara Marshall]

Ever noticed a mysterious red or green film taking over your saltwater aquarium?

That's cyanobacteria, a common yet troublesome guest in many marine environments. While it may seem harmless at first, left unchecked, cyanobacteria can overwhelm aquatic life and disrupt the delicate balance of your tank.

In this comprehensive guide, we dive deep into the world of cyanobacteria—exploring its causes, the conditions that fuel its growth, and effective strategies to combat this resilient pest. From adjusting nutrient levels to integrating specialized equipment, this article is packed with actionable advice to help you maintain a healthy, thriving aquarium.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐥𝐥 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫:
Identifying signs of cyanobacteria infestation.
Proven methods to eliminate outbreaks and prevent their return.
Insights into maintaining optimal water quality to discourage cyanobacteria growth.

Ready to turn the tide against cyanobacteria and restore the beauty of your reef tank? Dive into our guide and arm yourself with the knowledge to win the battle!

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞: https://www.mantasystems.net/a/blog/post/cyanobacteria

Let's keep our tanks clean and vibrant—join the discussion and share your own experiences in battling cyanobacteria!

 

[shanepike]

I thought I had cyano, but now I'm not sure. It definitely looks like cyano, but it's growing in very high-flow areas — like right in front of the powerhead and on the front of the powerhead. It also doesn't scrub off of surfaces very readily.

The two most unusual things about it (at least to me) are:

• I spent 15 minutes sucking out as much as I could yesterday. Within 10 minutes, it had all grown back. Similarly, I added half a gallon of pods the other day, and there was instantly an explosion of whatever this is — long strings of it all through the water.
• It grows in long strings, most notably on my tiny baby stomatellas. The two long strings in this photo are both attached to baby stomatellas. The web-like pattern is attached to the glass.

Any idea what this is?

Nitrates have measured zero for well over two months. Phosphates had been measuring zero since Oct 18, but recently just measured 0.02.

I had hair algae for several weeks, but got that taken care of. Then two weeks ago a sponge die-off released a ton of toxins into my tank. I did a ~95% water change and started running carbon. (Everything appears to be okay now.) This algae (or whatever it is) appeared soon after that.

 

[Tamara Marshall]

I don’t know what the red algae is from the picture. Cyano comes off in mats and a light brush removes it so it definitely isn’t that. There is red coralline algae and some red turf algaes.

I think you answered your question about the long strongly stuff by your observation.

Stomatella snails are known to release strings of slime or mucous, particularly when they are stressed or during spawning events. This behavior is most commonly observed in response to:

1. Predation or Physical Stress: If the snail feels threatened or is handled roughly, it may release mucous as a defense mechanism.

2. Spawning: Stomatella snails often release mucous strings during reproduction, accompanied by gametes (eggs or sperm). This is a natural behavior and not necessarily a sign of distress.

If you observe a Stomatella releasing slime, consider the context. If there are no predators or disturbances, it could be spawning rather than stress. However, if they consistently release slime without other signs of spawning, it may indicate stress from water quality, sudden environmental changes, or other tank conditions. Your water change might have triggered the stress response.

 

[kodock]

Great article! I find cyano to mainly be a low flow, excess nutrients, non mature tank feature - primarily mapped to phosphates, whether that be all in accordance with each other or not. Switching to a bare bottom tank takes away all that trapped surface area for it to flourish, in my experience.

Another good read or study would be correlation between cyano exposure to hobbyist and the type differences we might face in everyday tank involvement, and ALS/neurotoxin risk. To add it’s mainly blue-green freshwater cyano that they correlate.

A cluster of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in New Hampshire: a possible role for toxic cyanobacteria blooms - PubMed

Cyanobacteria produce many neurotoxins including beta-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) that has been liked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and neurodegenerative disease. A number of ALS cases have been diagnosed among residents of Enfield, NH, a town encompassing a lake with a history of...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

This one below is a great read.. talking about cyanobacteria producing neurotoxins like BMAA

[https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5727154/

Florida doesn’t agree though

https://www.floridahealth.gov/environmental-health/aquatic-toxins/_documents/cyano-faqs-pio.pdf

 

[msporleder]

I thought I had cyano, but now I'm not sure. It definitely looks like cyano, but it's growing in very high-flow areas — like right in front of the powerhead and on the front of the powerhead. It also doesn't scrub off of surfaces very readily.

The two most unusual things about it (at least to me) are:

• I spent 15 minutes sucking out as much as I could yesterday. Within 10 minutes, it had all grown back. Similarly, I added half a gallon of pods the other day, and there was instantly an explosion of whatever this is — long strings of it all through the water.
• It grows in long strings, most notably on my tiny baby stomatellas. The two long strings in this photo are both attached to baby stomatellas. The web-like pattern is attached to the glass.

View attachment 95521

Any idea what this is?

Nitrates have measured zero for well over two months. Phosphates had been measuring zero since Oct 18, but recently just measured 0.02.

I had hair algae for several weeks, but got that taken care of. Then two weeks ago a sponge die-off released a ton of toxins into my tank. I did a ~95% water change and started running carbon. (Everything appears to be okay now.) This algae (or whatever it is) appeared soon after that.

dinos?

 

[shanepike]

dinos?

Yep. Ostreopsis specifically. This is one of the shots that I took under the microscope:


Got a positive ID on R2R, and this guide has been phenomenal for learning how to get rid of them:

https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/dealing-with-dinos-rev-h-published-august-2023-pdf.3865865/

I ordered what I need today (UV, etc.), so we'll see how it goes!