white sponges

[miked78231]

theres white sponges popping up everywhere and i was just curious if anyone knew where i could find more info on these or if any of you could tell me a little about them. they look like a white fuzzy fungus type thing. i tried to google but it didnt bring up anything really.

[NaCl_H2O]

Probably nothing to worry about - a picture would help? "Sponges" are going to be fairly substantial in their mass/flesh - you should be able to break of a piece in-tack. Other "things" in a reef tank are more like spider webs or a "fungus" - these basically will just brush off with nothing you can grab a hold of. Some of these can be problematic because they will cover corals and keep them from growing and getting light.

Can you get a pic, or describe it a little more?

[miked78231]

i cant get a pic today but they are a white vainy sponge looking thing that grows up in to a throat or a spout. it almost looks like a white volcano. also there was this little beak that was open and inside was this black thing and when i went to touch it it closed up.

[NaCl_H2O]

... it almost looks like a white volcano. also there was this little beak that was open and inside was this black thing and when i went to touch it it closed up.
:blink :blink uh, don't put your hand back into the tank ;)
jk, I have no idea what that could be :unsure

[miked78231]

all these new things started growing in the last 2 weeks. im guessing this is good, my tank is growing, its just hard to identify any of them.

[MattK]

Try this:
http://www.lawrence.edu/dept/biology/biol_81a/invert/invert.html

[Reef69]

http://www.maast.org/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&p=153504&hi ghlight=#153504

..Sponges. :zzz

[Richard]

Like these maybe?

http://www.reefs.org/hhfaq/pages/picture_pages/faq_sponge.html

[miked78231]

the reason i asked again is because a friend of mine told me that you might be wrong and what you described are a different kind of sponge. he was telling me that they will spread and screw up my rocks growing process so i thought that i might ask again and see if i could get another opinion

[cbianco]

Try this:
http://www.lawrence.edu/dept/biology/biol_81a/invert/invert.html

Hey Matt, that is the same exact link I gave him in his last sponge post, LOL. Small world!

Excellent resource for quality pictures!

Christopher

[cbianco]

Mike

At this point in time I wouldn't worry about your sponges. Sponges are filter feeders and require no extra work to keep them. Discovering new things and RESEARCHING them are a great way to better understand your tank and how it works. Remember that essentially we all own a little part of the ocean. What takes place in the ocean, will take place in our tanks (to some extent).

Try not to worry about "bad stuff" in your tank. Learn to enjoy and explore. It is all natural (unless there is a beer cap floating in your tank :) ).

Just my $.02 :)

Christopher

[Reef69]

Ive never heard of anything, in my years as a reefer, that will "screw up rock's growing process". Sponges dont cause any harm, they just filter water. They are very commong so, its normal.

[miked78231]

well i never said my friend new what he was talking about he had just made a comment last night and it made me question again.