Sponge question

Jkwok97 · 06/04/2011, 10:30 PM

Hey all, fairly new to the hobby, I had a sponge crab who met his demise overnight from my condylactis anenome. My question is the sponge that was protecting the crab is now just hanging around the tank. Do I need to remove this? Is this bad for my tank?

MarcoPolo · 06/05/2011, 12:25 AM

Assuming the sponge is alive, no harm at all to leave it in the tank. General rule is that when something dies in the tank, it needs to be removed fast before it breaks down generating organic waste which in turn will impact adversely water quality. But if sponge is doing well, it's a nice to have in the tank.

Jkwok97 · 06/05/2011, 08:32 AM

Thanks!

aleonn · 06/05/2011, 01:06 PM

In a big system, I'd leave the sponge in the tank, especially if healthy and doing well. If you had a nano or small system, I'm more inclined to remove it, as dying sponges may release toxins.

Jkwok97 · 06/06/2011, 07:36 AM

ok that sparks another question then, how can i tell if the sponge is living or dead? everything i read prior to buying the sponge crab said they use a living sponge, could the sponge have died so he separated from it? i found it quite odd that he wasn't with his sponge when i found his carcus. sorry no pic of the sponge i'll try to get one tonight.

on another note, this fiasco happened saturday morning and this morning (monday) i found my condy looking like this...

not sure what happened but yesterday during the day he was fully out and looking healthy. everything tests normal so i'm wondering if trying to ingest the sponge crab would've done this or perhaps the sponge? anyone else have any experiences with this?

tymon · 06/06/2011, 09:27 AM

sponges are very hard to feed it will most likely slowly die.

06/04/2011, 10:30 PM	#1
Jkwok97 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 3	Sponge question Hey all, fairly new to the hobby, I had a sponge crab who met his demise overnight from my condylactis anenome. My question is the sponge that was protecting the crab is now just hanging around the tank. Do I need to remove this? Is this bad for my tank?

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Kent Phos Reactor sponge question	Snakebyt	Lighting, Filtration & Other Equipment	2	12/05/2006 04:36 PM
Sponge question	pewter_jean	Saint Louis Area Saltwater Hobbyists (SLASH)	0	06/04/2006 08:28 PM
sponge question	Frizz	Advanced Topics	7	04/21/2006 10:20 PM
Caring for sponges...questions	Brad Black	New to the Hobby	2	03/16/2006 08:00 PM
scypha sponge question	amorpnai	Reef Discussion	1	02/14/2006 09:09 AM

06/05/2011, 12:25 AM	#2
MarcoPolo Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Brussels, EU Posts: 475	Assuming the sponge is alive, no harm at all to leave it in the tank. General rule is that when something dies in the tank, it needs to be removed fast before it breaks down generating organic waste which in turn will impact adversely water quality. But if sponge is doing well, it's a nice to have in the tank.

06/05/2011, 08:32 AM	#3
Jkwok97 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 3	Thanks!

06/05/2011, 01:06 PM	#4
aleonn Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 4,041	In a big system, I'd leave the sponge in the tank, especially if healthy and doing well. If you had a nano or small system, I'm more inclined to remove it, as dying sponges may release toxins.

06/06/2011, 09:27 AM	#6
tymon Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 278	sponges are very hard to feed it will most likely slowly die.