Featured Algae Suitable for Saltwater Aquarium

There are so many plants in freshwater tanks, and we deal with a variety of algae issues in freshwater aquariums every day, but how about saltwater plants? What algae can live in the saltwater tank? If aquarists have doubts about the algae in the saltwater tank, hope this post can help you as a reference.

Good algae in a marine tank

Below are some of the good algae in a saltwater aquarium. When you found them in your marine tank, it is no need to panic, you can learn more about them before deciding whether to cultivate them or not.

Good algae types:

Coralline Algae

Red Dragon's Breath - Halymenia sp.

Padina Algae

Maiden's Hair Algae

Caulerpa Racemosa

Features of marine algae

Coralline Algae

Coralline algae are common algae in saltwater tanks, they may grow to cover all the surfaces such as live rocks, shells, etc. Although they are a sign of better tank water quality and lighting, but they may detract from the aesthetics of the tank. When you scrape them off, the algae debris will grow more in other corners of the aquarium. So please be more careful when scraping them off.

Red Dragon's Breath - Halymenia sp.

Halymenia sp. algae can grow without roots on live rocks and adds a brilliant red color to the aquarium. Some marine ornamental fish like to eat this algae food source, if you want to keep them in your saltwater tank, firstly, try putting a small one to see if any creatures like to eat them. If the inhabitants like them, you can keep more in your tank as one of the natural fish food sources.

PadinaAlgae

Padina algae are harmless, they can decorate the aquarium with unique rotating growth patterns. Some of the constituents in Padina are being researched for their ability to support the structure and function of bone and connective tissue. (resource)

Maiden's Hair Algae

The algae plants resemble the hair of a young girl, the color is lighter than the Green Hair Algae. When grown in patches they look like carpeting in the marine tank. How to grow Maiden’s hair algae? You can try to provide them with a strong water current and moderate lighting. It is sensitive to high levels of nitrates and any detectable levels of copper, but it is also a wonderful breeding ground for beneficial crustaceans like amphipods and copepods.

Caulerpa Racemosa Algae

As higher-level algae such as Feather Caulerpa(suitable for seahorse tanks), generally, grow very well in marine tanks, so they need to be trimmed every few weeks. The algae go thriving with medium to high strong light (red-orange lighting is better), high nutrients, and medium water flow - a 20 times turnover per hour (LPH).

This monoecious species can also reproduce sexually but if you provide them with 24 hours of continuous lighting, they will not reproduce sexually. This is an effective way to control Caulerpa Racemosa Algae’s thriving.

More beneficial algae in marine tanks, please wait for the next post sharing.