yellow ball sponge in reef tank...i have a ?, pic's included

reefD · 04/08/2009, 09:36 AM

just got this guy..ive always liked the nice colorful sponges available in the hobby. about 5 yrs ago i tried a red tree sponge and it just slowly parished. research in the past has told me that sponges are hard to take care of and some are imppossible to keep in a home aquirium but they stay in the trade due to the wonderful colorations and us not being able to resist them. now i know that some of the hard to care forms can be kept with success but its not easy.

anyways i recently came across this little guy called a yellow ball sponge. everything a researched said they are one of the most hardy sponges in the hobby. and that they are even hard to kill when buried in substrate!
now i wont go that far but does anyone have experinece with this specimen and is it really that hardy? also does it require any lighting ? i know some sponges do aprieciate bright lighting.
any other care info much apprieciated!!

THANKS GUYS!

reefD · 04/08/2009, 09:38 AM

IT LOOKS LIKE IT HAS SAND ON TOP OF IT BUT IT ISNT SAND JUST SOME DIFFERENT COLOR /TEXTURE ON THE TOP OF IT.

fufu · 04/08/2009, 09:52 AM

I never kept one, but these should be popular with the kids. "Hey, its spongebob!"

reefD · 04/08/2009, 10:25 AM

Thats what i call him! lol!

BigJay · 04/08/2009, 10:37 AM

I have a friend who keeps some really pretty blue sponges alive.

He has to feed live phytoplankton though, he cultures it himself.

jbird69 · 04/08/2009, 11:12 AM

I hve some flourescent green ball sponges popping up in my tank. One has grown to the size of a large grape. theres 5-6 others that are about marble size. They are all in very dim/dark areas.

bubbly · 04/08/2009, 11:57 AM

There is an article in advanced aquarist about silicate dosing -- you can dose your tank with sodium silicate, which diatoms need for their shells. The diatoms feed your tank, and you can skim them out, and there is less nutrients available for algae to grow. I have tried it, and it works pretty well.

I am just mentioning it because some sponges use silica in their shells -- I have noticed some sponges in my tank grew faster after I added the stuff. There was not much difference in diatom growth so that didn't turn into a big problem.

I got my sodium silicate from a pottery supply store -- just mentioning it in case you wanted to try it for your sponges, although in the article they say they couldn't see a difference in the sponges they tried to keep alive.

sikpupy · 04/08/2009, 06:04 PM

Something new-er to the form, cool, thanks.

reefscape15 · 04/08/2009, 06:09 PM

They do like heavier feedings so they wouldn't be the best things in an all SPS tank, but they should be okay if you have a larger fuge to help constantly feed your system

reefD · 04/09/2009, 11:27 AM

thanks guys ...i do feed heavy and i also have a fuge. sponge bob looks happy in the tank so i will continue dosing the way i did prior to getting him.

AGAIN THANKS FOR ALL THE INFO GUYS!

jkj454 · 05/08/2014, 05:39 PM

Hi all,
I just purchased a yellow ball sponge. I carefully acclimated it in the bag, taking water out and replacing with tank water, small bits at a time. When it came time to release it into the tank I tried my best to do it completely underwater but I think the sponge may have been exposed to air in the bag for a second or two. I tried very hard to avoid this but it still happened. Just HOW sensitive are these creatures when it comes to air exposure?
Thanks,
JKJ

Randy Holmes-Farley · 05/08/2014, 06:10 PM

Very sensitive to air. Most large sponges also do not survive in reef tanks.

I would put it in a dark spot or algae will likely kill it. I have had one like that for a couple of years now and it has grown considerably.

I dose silicate, and I dose vinegar which drives bacteria which may be feeding mine.

JWClark · 05/08/2014, 06:21 PM

Remember, crabby patties are made out of plankton.

04/08/2009, 09:36 AM	#1
reefD Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Schenectady,New York Posts: 4,968	yellow ball sponge in reef tank...i have a ?, pic's included just got this guy..ive always liked the nice colorful sponges available in the hobby. about 5 yrs ago i tried a red tree sponge and it just slowly parished. research in the past has told me that sponges are hard to take care of and some are imppossible to keep in a home aquirium but they stay in the trade due to the wonderful colorations and us not being able to resist them. now i know that some of the hard to care forms can be kept with success but its not easy. anyways i recently came across this little guy called a yellow ball sponge. everything a researched said they are one of the most hardy sponges in the hobby. and that they are even hard to kill when buried in substrate! now i wont go that far but does anyone have experinece with this specimen and is it really that hardy? also does it require any lighting ? i know some sponges do aprieciate bright lighting. any other care info much apprieciated!! THANKS GUYS! __________________ DAVID Current Tank Info: it has four sides and a bottom...oh yeah and it has water in it. lol

04/08/2009, 09:38 AM	#2
reefD Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Schenectady,New York Posts: 4,968	IT LOOKS LIKE IT HAS SAND ON TOP OF IT BUT IT ISNT SAND JUST SOME DIFFERENT COLOR /TEXTURE ON THE TOP OF IT. __________________ DAVID Current Tank Info: it has four sides and a bottom...oh yeah and it has water in it. lol

04/08/2009, 10:25 AM	#4
reefD Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Schenectady,New York Posts: 4,968	Thats what i call him! lol! __________________ DAVID Current Tank Info: it has four sides and a bottom...oh yeah and it has water in it. lol

04/08/2009, 10:37 AM	#5
BigJay Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Southlake, Texas Posts: 1,872	I have a friend who keeps some really pretty blue sponges alive. He has to feed live phytoplankton though, he cultures it himself. __________________ PBITAWA

04/08/2009, 11:12 AM	#6
jbird69 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: The beautiful State of Jefferson Posts: 2,751	I hve some flourescent green ball sponges popping up in my tank. One has grown to the size of a large grape. theres 5-6 others that are about marble size. They are all in very dim/dark areas. __________________ Broke Back Mountain is not a movie, its the pile of dead ninjas in Chuck Norris' back yard

04/08/2009, 09:52 AM	#3
fufu Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Houston Posts: 432	I never kept one, but these should be popular with the kids. "Hey, its spongebob!"

04/08/2009, 11:57 AM	#7
bubbly Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 331	There is an article in advanced aquarist about silicate dosing -- you can dose your tank with sodium silicate, which diatoms need for their shells. The diatoms feed your tank, and you can skim them out, and there is less nutrients available for algae to grow. I have tried it, and it works pretty well. I am just mentioning it because some sponges use silica in their shells -- I have noticed some sponges in my tank grew faster after I added the stuff. There was not much difference in diatom growth so that didn't turn into a big problem. I got my sodium silicate from a pottery supply store -- just mentioning it in case you wanted to try it for your sponges, although in the article they say they couldn't see a difference in the sponges they tried to keep alive.

04/08/2009, 06:04 PM	#8
sikpupy Moved On Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 1,431	Something new-er to the form, cool, thanks.

04/08/2009, 06:09 PM	#9
reefscape15 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Elmira Heights, NY Posts: 2,812	They do like heavier feedings so they wouldn't be the best things in an all SPS tank, but they should be okay if you have a larger fuge to help constantly feed your system __________________ A new beginning........... JIM Current Tank Info: 5g standard softie/zoa tank, just starting a 20H

04/09/2009, 11:27 AM	#10
reefD Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Schenectady,New York Posts: 4,968	thanks guys ...i do feed heavy and i also have a fuge. sponge bob looks happy in the tank so i will continue dosing the way i did prior to getting him. AGAIN THANKS FOR ALL THE INFO GUYS! __________________ DAVID Current Tank Info: it has four sides and a bottom...oh yeah and it has water in it. lol

05/08/2014, 05:39 PM	#11
jkj454 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 1	Yellow ball sponge possible exposed to air Hi all, I just purchased a yellow ball sponge. I carefully acclimated it in the bag, taking water out and replacing with tank water, small bits at a time. When it came time to release it into the tank I tried my best to do it completely underwater but I think the sponge may have been exposed to air in the bag for a second or two. I tried very hard to avoid this but it still happened. Just HOW sensitive are these creatures when it comes to air exposure? Thanks, JKJ

05/08/2014, 06:10 PM	#12
Randy Holmes-Farley Reef Chemist Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Arlington, Massachusetts Posts: 86,233	Very sensitive to air. Most large sponges also do not survive in reef tanks. I would put it in a dark spot or algae will likely kill it. I have had one like that for a couple of years now and it has grown considerably. I dose silicate, and I dose vinegar which drives bacteria which may be feeding mine. __________________ Randy Holmes-Farley Current Tank Info: 120 mixed reef

05/08/2014, 06:21 PM	#13
JWClark Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: MD Posts: 576	Remember, crabby patties are made out of plankton.