Mangroves and water

[MikeDeL]

Since I added my mangrove Im losing alot more water a day. Do the mangroves soak up the water and leave the salt behind, or do they absorb the water also?


Thanks,
Mike

[Richard]

I'm not too familiar with using mangroves but I don't think they would make a noticable impact on water loss. The air has been much drier with the colder weather though. I know my tanks have been evaporating alot more water lately. Probably didn't evaporate anything today though, it's like a swamp outside.

[MikeDeL]

Its been raining almost nonstop since Sunday here, which is when I really started to notice. I have a nano, so even an extra cup a day I notice. My fuge, which is not connected to the tank yet, is evaporating at the same rate as normal.

[elm0]

Related question....I have a couple of mangrove pods in my tank as well, I've had them for about 2 weeks and they havent looked so hot. I just got my MH 20k running this past Sunday, so I'm wondering if the MH is a good light for the Mangroves, should they start to grow better now? Also, I don't know if it matters but I dont have the roots buried in the sand because my tank is so deep, the pods would be completly under water, so i just have them wedged between some rocks....and suggestions?

[beareef19]

My tank evaporates about 3 gal a day with approx 15-20 pods in my sump it was 3 gal a day before I added the pods.Its been cold lately so if your house heater has been on that will also contribute to evaporation. Pods acclaimate better if they are in the sand but you can wedge them into your rockwork. Metal halides may be abit to intence for your pods if they are to close to the light. Mine are in my sump w/ 75watts on them and they are growing like mad.

Barry

[DeAngelove]

Mike -
I have noticed a slight increase in evaporation in my Nano that has two Mangrove pods, as well. I have crushed coral as my substrate, and only partially barried the roots in the substrate. The mangroves seem to be doing fine... and my water quality parameters have drastically improved since adding them. :-D I'm adding about a cup of (extra) ro/di to the tank, every couple of days to keep the salinity at a reasonable level.

HTH

[astrong]

Terrestrial plants, such as mangroves, absorb water through their roots and transpire it through their leaves. You should notice a slight increase in evaporation because to this.

Due to the harsh environment of salt water they have a waxy cuticle on their leaves to inhibit water loss. They are effectively living in a dessert. This keeps them from dessicating despite being submerged in an ocean of water.

Its an interesting niche to fill, but they will also do quite well in your front yard, assuming it doesn't freeze.

Mangroves prefer a lower kelvin light. I would recommend a 6500K lamp for them ideally. Terrestrial plant utilize different photsynthetic pigments than aquatic algaes, such as zooxanthellae. They primarily rely on chlorophyll which responds best when given a mixture of red and blue light, aka daylight.

Plants are cool...
Thats what I like about this hobby, I tell everyone I keep corals, but I couldn't do it without the plants that live inside them. I'm really growing algae and the corals are parasites.

[GaryP]

I agree with astrong on the transpiration. That should only be a small part of the increase though. It more likely has something to do with humidity.

Gary

[scuba_steveo]

I'm really growing algae and the corals are parasites.

Interesting, never looked at it that way before.