# Marimo ball algae becoming a pest?



## nonamethefish (Feb 25, 2004)

I don't know if any of you have or have had a subscription to Aquarium Fish Magazine but I recall in one planted tank column someone asked a question about how his/her "Marimo ball" had disentegrated and started invading all the other plants. 

Seems like that might have happened to me, but in a different way. I had one ride along in a big plant order to start up my 46 gallon bowfront tank...the price was just too good to pass up and they seemed pretty interesting. I had it for maybe a few months, and during this time it did not do much besides grow a little. The fish did not pay it much mind so I decided to have it ride along in a trade I was doing with another fishkeeper. Some time before I had wondered if it would be possible to propagate this stuff so I removed a small portion of it...and tossed it into a 10 gallon tank in the back. This tank was raising some Nothos and had Najas/java moss...

Anyway, after a while I noticed lots of green stuff in the back and remembered the experiment. It must have worked. It started to make a nuisiance of itself by getting entangled in the Najas/javamoss. Now it is in practically all the tanks. Not like any other algae as this stuff is tough and branching and does not appear to grow fast. Does geting the way when it binds up java moss and makes it hard for fish to use it as shelter.

So could this stuff still be that Cladophora algae? Photos forthcoming.


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## John P. (Nov 24, 2004)

Yes. The same scenario happened to me. I ended up bleaching the tank after losing the war.


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## youjin (Apr 1, 2006)

thanks for sharing this. I had just split the Marimo ball up and tie it to my driftwood and hoping that it would grow like other moss did.

Will remove it at once.....


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## nonamethefish (Feb 25, 2004)

Oh great...

I done some snooping around in this said tank and a piece of driftwood, Anubias, narrow leaf java ferns, whole bunch of java and some Taiwan moss are all contaminated with the stuff. The java moss was hit particularly hard.

I would hate to throw out the plants so could the Cladophora be killed be a bleach dip or similar? I'd really hate to total this tank so I will only resort to that if nothing else will work. If their are any less invasive ways to get it done that would be great. 

Also, how necessary would it be to eliminate it from the other tanks? It is present in some fry boxes(but in tiny amounts) and in another ten gallon which functioned as a breeding/raising tank. Would cross contamination be unavoidable.


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## John P. (Nov 24, 2004)

The only thing that worked to end the probelm for me was a massive bleaching treatment. Sorry. But you'll be happy when it's gone.


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## Avalon (Mar 7, 2005)

I'm not quite sure why someone would introduce a ball of algae into their tank. Maybe someone could explain that to me? I've never owned a "pre-grown" algae ball. I typically raise my own algae, and I'm totally dumbfounded as to why someone would pay for more algae.


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## nonamethefish (Feb 25, 2004)

It is supposed to be a different species of algae that is not invasive and stays in a ball form.

I've found a post by Tom Barr mentioning the stuff and that it can produce new plants sexually which attach briefly. I've picked this stuff off of some anubias leaves. Looking at many of the clumps some do suggest an attempt at forming a ball.


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## nonamethefish (Feb 25, 2004)

On the other would anyone be able to determine if I sent a sample if this is C. aegregapholia(spelling?) instead of some other kind of Cladophora?


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