Fishing375

I have something growing on one of my rocks. It looks like the rock is being slowly covered in a maroon colored velvety mat. The “hairs” on this mat seem to sway in the current and they seem to stretch out when the lights are on and retract when the lights are off. If it’s an algae, what sort is it and how can I get rid of it? Not really sure if I want to eliminate it completely though. Looks very pretty and it’s only on the 1 rock so I might leave it be as long as it doesn’t become a nuisance or if I find out it’s something that will cause problems. So far, both crabs and snails seem uninterested in it.

Unfortunately, I can’t seem to get a very good picture of it. The area of the rock that has the most coverage is at a hard to focus on angle.




Any ideas?

andywe

Well, the pics don't really show it well but it is probably red algae. A little is no worry. Are your nitrates high or your ph a little low? Is this a relatively new tank or was new rock introduced?

The algae will tend to bloom a bit under those conditions. If it pulls back in a sheet then it's the red variety to watch and control. If it starts taking over the tank, there are algea additives that will help control it, or stir it up when vacuuming your gravel and let it get caught in your filter.