Monday, March 7, 2011

Beard Algae | Freshwater Red Algae Types

Beard algae was a class of Red Algae, shaped like a beard with a length of yarn to 15 cm, and the little blackish green branches. Beard Algae very strongly embedded in the leaf and could hardly be removed without causing damage to the plants leaf. Their presences in the water plants aquarium are usually derived from the new plant.

This algae type usually attached to the plants that were growing and close to the source of light. The favored conditions by this algae type is aquarium water with high hardness, low CO2 levels, and high pH. The high nitrate levels are also a trigger of growth. If the algae growth was bad, then they will damage the leaves concerned.

Cleaning the algae forcibly will cause damage to the leaf because they attached itself firmly to the leaves. Thus, the infected leaves should be cut and allowed the new sprout. To prevent new leaves infected by the algae, could be by put the Siamese Algae Eater fish or algae shrimp into the aquarium to clean the algae which new grown. The addition of a dose of carbon dioxide (CO2) can suppress the algae growth because Beard algae can not grow well in the aquarium with an adequate CO2 supply.