Caulerpa Taxifolia: Read before dealing with it!!

[EagleEyes]

Hey everyone, i promised a group of people that i would create a thread on the noxious weed Caulerpa Taxifolia. I will add pictures to this thread of the weed and i encourage ALL OF YOU to do the same.
I think that it would be beneficial as well to hear some of your experiences. I know that this is under the Just Starting Out forum but it is for a reason. Im sure that you will understand later on. Please tell people about this and increase awareness. ESPECIALLY if you or a friend live near the ocean.

To begin, here is a perfect website to get a basic understanding of the reproductive cycles and the ecology of the weed. There is a nice little story at the beginning to show people how it got into the ocean in the first place.
caulerpa taxifolia fact sheet

In my tank, the weed was slow growing because there werent enough nutrients for it to flourish and there is a natural form of it that grows slow. The taxifolia is a form created by people in Austria and released into the ocean in a University in France.

There are a great number of others who have had the noxious species of the weed, sold to them by LFS's (Local Fish Store's) or bought in the invisible form on live rock. (the latter is how i got mine.) DO NOT LISTEN TO THE LFS if they tell you it is good for your sump. Ask them to give you options and if they give you two: thats how you know they want to make a sale. There are tons of good choices for refugium algae, just give it a thorough check on this site before asking the LFS.

I recommend:
Caulerpa
Racemosa
serrulata.

Salicornia
Parvispora (edible)

Chaetomorpha
Buy from this guy: (I wouldnt eat it)
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/livestock-sale-trade/17764-chaetomorpha-sale-good-cause.html


Feel free to add to that list, thats just off the top of my head. Theres plenty of solid choices out there.

Ill ad-lib from here feel free to chime in! You are all welcome!

 

[DaveK]

While I would agree that this plant should not be released into the wild, I don't see it as that big a problem in most of the reef tanks most of us have.

It's easy enough to weed out, although you may need to do this a few times. Also, a tang or two will usually eat it all for you.

In a refugium I'd be a little more careful, since you usually can't usually put a tang in to control it. Even so, if you weed it back from time to time, it's not that big a problem. I have also seen Caulerpa racemosa do almost the same thing, but weeding it back keeps it under control.

If you really can't control it, I'd look toward my overall water quality, and the filtration system on the tank. You might be providing "tons" of nutrients for the algae. In this case, normal methods used to control other nuisance algaes may be used.

 

[mps9506]

Great post EagleEyes. I agree with ya 100% after seeing lots of invasive species here in the southeast go unchecked.
I've been a big fan of chaeto for the last few years.

 

[EagleEyes]

Thanks to both of you!

Hey Dave, have you seen a tang eat the long leaf variety of feathered caulerpa? I had heard of that before but it was always the racemosa(grape) or some other variety.. I have the feeling that yours was the feathered frond var. and was not the invasive one if your tangs were goin to town on it. There is the normal variety and there is the enhanced sp. that contains the toxins that keep most fish away. Theres a great section on morphology in the link, under section II, letter B.

Also, I promised that I would add in a bit about what to do with the alga if you decide to harvest it by hand. Section 5D gives procedures for chunkin the stuff out. Hard rock material or sand should be thrown into a garbage can bound for a dump, and the weed itself should be put down a sink or drain connected to a water treatment plant. Suggestions are to freeze all material for 24 hours before chuckin it. It might also be the case for using the material in aquaria, just freeze and thaw, rinse and add back into the aquarium or store someplace. I have read someplace that the weed can survive a dry environment for up to 11 days and still grow if resubmerged. Burning is my prefered method, not because it is effective but because ive been a pyro for a long time. lol

Basically, I just dont want anything to do with it, not because there is risk involved but because it over runs some peoples aquarium and ruins the experience. Also, im in enough trouble with customs as it is.

 

[Woodstock]

Uh oh... I just added some to my refugium. I have 4 types of macro algae in it so far.

 

[blue_eyes53813]

Great information eagleeyes... Thank you

 

[BoomerD]

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/hcpb/species/nuis_exo/NR_caulerpa_112901.htm

"DFG Alerts Aquarium Owners of Dangerous Threat to California Sea Life




The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) wants to alert saltwater aquarium owners that a part of their hobby may present a significant danger to California's marine ecosystems if they ignore a new law that bans the popular algae Caulerpa taxifolia. The variety, one of nine species targeted under a new law, is found in pet supply shops that cater to saltwater aquaria hobbyists.

Legislation in September made it illegal to sell, possess, import, transport, transfer, give away or release alive in the state any of nine species of Caulerpa. Under the law, introduced by State Assemblyman Tom Harman of Huntington Beach, DFG has the authority to confiscate and destroy the marine algae.

Biologists blame Caulerpa for devastating marine ecosystems in the Mediterranean Sea and off the coast of Australia. They said the algae species transformed vast areas of the Mediterranean into watery wastelands.

The other varieties have the potential to spread indiscriminately in the California marine environment, or have appearance similar to Caulerpa taxifolia. They are cupressoides, mexicana, sertulariodes, floridana, ashmeadii, racemosa, verticillata, and scapelliformis.

DFG's Invasive Species Coordinator Susan Ellis said Caulerpa has been found in Agua Hedionda lagoon in San Diego County, and Huntington Harbour in Orange County. State, federal, and local authorities have already committed close to $3 million on eradication of these populations. As with any invasive species, DFG biologists said that complete eradication is expensive and often elusive. A coalition of federal, state, and local agencies, as well as private parties, formed the Southern California Caulerpa Action Team with the purpose of controlling the algae.

"Once the alga is introduced, it multiplies rapidly and blankets the entire bottom, smothering native organisms," Ellis said. "The problems probably occurred when people disposed of the contents of their aquaria by dumping them into these saltwater lagoons. Even a small fragment of the plant can become established and become a new infestation."

Ellis said the DFG hopes to launch a letter campaign directed at marine aquarium wholesalers and pet store retailers about the ban. Caulerpa is often shipped from Indonesia attached to live coral. Still, the public outreach will likely miss some hobbyists as there are more than 180 retailers just in the San Francisco Bay area. That number grows substantially in the Los Angeles and San Diego regions, she said.

Fish and Game wardens have already confiscated a shipment at one retail outlet and investigated one large shipment of the Caulerpa to a wholesale distributor. Violators face a civil penalty of up to $10,000 for each violation."


Facts about Caulerpa taxifolia - February 2003

Noxious Algae Found In Southern California Coastal Waters

 

[EagleEyes]

WOW Nice one BoomerD good websites! Woodstock i think that you should be OK if you deal with it in a manner suitable to keep it from entering any marine waters.

Also those of you who have the varieties mentioned in the article like C. Mexicana or C. Racemosa (i'll fix my recommendations), the article says that they have the POTENTIAL to cause the same kind of harm to marine environments as the taxifolia. Meaning they have as much potential as the native strain of C. Taxifolia had before it was altered. So just make sure to find a good way to deal with it so that it doesnt cause any trouble.

I would recommend that you call a cooperative extension or your DFG OR if you can find info about the Caulerpa Action Team they would be perfect.

 

[DaveK]

Thanks to both of you!

Hey Dave, have you seen a tang eat the long leaf variety of feathered caulerpa? ...

Assuming you are refering to C. Taxifolia, then yes, I have had tangs in my own system clean it out. However, I have the following comments.

There are several species that look similar, and I may have had a type they liked. Also, any toxins, or anything else that could make it taste bad to a fish, may not have been preset.

There is also a much tougher leafed type of feathered Caulerpa, and they might not have gone after that type. I never had any of that in my tanks.

 

[DrHank]

I have a feather leafed caulerpa in my fuge as well. Whether it's C. Taxifloria or another feather leaf variety, I'm not sure. I use it for nutrient export purposes, harvest it weekly and discard it with houshold trash.

I think that the real point is to ensure that all living materials from our tanks are disposed of in a manner that will prevent it from being introduced into any outside ecosystem. Honestly, this stuff sounds like the Kudzu of the sea. A real shame but the damage has allready been done.

 

[prow]

i have used many types of caulerpa. never had any issues. i actually like taxifolia. the one mutated strain that caused all the fuss has resulted in Ca. banning every type of caulerpa that looks similar. non mutated taxifolia is a native of hawaii and does not over grow anything, in fact many things over grow on it. off our shores in Ca, IMO, its not the caulerpa that is the issue or all that invasive. its how poluted the water is and how much more polution we feed the algea daily. the algea is just doing its job. although i must say the mutated strain is far more aggressive and has been found off the coast still we are feeding it thats the reason for the overgrowth not that its a bad weed.

 

[EagleEyes]

In a long overdue attempt to answer the last post by prow, I think the biggest worry is that any piece that finds its way to any body of water COULD mutate somehow becoming introduced and relatively invasive of native organisms. Some of them have been known to become invasive when previously (seemingly) uninvasive through natural selection over time. So better safe than sorry I suppose.