How do you feed corals with phytoplankton?

Direct dosing phytoplankton is the technique used when you aim a tiny burst of phyto directly towards the extended polyps of the targeted coral or clam. To dose phytoplankton directly, you need an eyedropper, turkey baster, or pipette to extract a small amount of phyto from the bottle.

Do corals benefit from phytoplankton?

Phytoplankton often causes coral polyps to extend, but it does not directly feed most stony corals. The benefit provided to stony corals by phytoplankton is to increase the amount of zooplankton available for the corals to feed on.

Can you add too much phytoplankton?

When too many nutrients are available, phytoplankton may grow out of control and form harmful algal blooms (HABs). These blooms can produce extremely toxic compounds that have harmful effects on fish, shellfish, mammals, birds, and even people.

Do corals eat phytoplankton?

Phytoplankton are the base of most marine food webs and the prey for zooplankton, a favorite food of corals.

What time should I feed my phytoplankton?

In terms of your question, the best time to feed the tank anything (such as zooplankton additives, cyclopeeze, etc) would be in the middle of the night when feeders are extended on corals.

Do you need to refrigerate phytoplankton?

Refrigeration slows down the plankton’s metabolism so that they can live and be nutritious for an extended period of time. If you leave the plankton at room temperature they will use up the nutrients and starve in addition to being less nutritious for your tank.

Does coral eat zooplankton?

Corals also eat by catching tiny floating animals called zooplankton. At night, coral polyps come out of their skeletons to feed, stretching their long, stinging tentacles to capture critters that are floating by.

Does phytoplankton reduce nitrates?

Live Phytoplankton can actually photosynthesize in the tank and cause Nitrate to decrease.

How long does live phytoplankton last?

The plankton I use says it can only be refrigerated for 7 days but I have kept it in the fridge for several weeks with no problems so I think it just depends on the quality of the material you are using. Theoretically, you should be able to keep the culture going indefinitely.

What eats zooplankton in the coral reef?

The Zooplankton is then consumed by some secondary consumers: the Fan Worm, the Blue Chromis, the Sea Sponge the Coral Polyps. The Fan Worm is eaten by the tertiary consumer, the puffer fish. The Coral Polyps are eaten by a tertiary consumer, the Sea Slug. The Sea Sponge is eaten by the angelfish.

How do you raise phytoplankton?

To grow phytoplankton, you need to provide a starter culture with light, nutrients, carbon dioxide, oxygen, and a clean place to live. About every 7 days, you harvest about half to two-thirds of the culture to feed your rotifers, brine shrimp or corals, and you repeat the process over and over again.