Chaetomorpha

Chaetomorpha
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Viridiplantae
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Cladophorales
Family: Cladophoraceae
Genus: Chaetomorpha
Species

In taxonomy, Chaetomorpha, also called Chaeto for short, is a genus of green algae, specifically of the Cladophoraceae.[1]

Aquarium hobby usage

Chaetomorpha is especially common in saltwater aquariums because it can be used for removal of nutrients, especially nitrates. Aquarists will commonly house this alga, perhaps with others, in a refugium. Once it has grown to a significant mass, a chunk of the algae is removed to be thrown out or donated to another aquarist, taking the nutrients it has absorbed out of the system. Chaetomorpha is preferred over other macroalgae such as Caulerpa because it is less likely than Caulerpa to undergo sexual reproduction in the aquarium. It is also easy to remove because it will not attach to rocks or substrates. In a study run by Casey Campbell, it was shown that coal bed methane is filtered by chaetomoropha. In addition to nutrient export, chaetomorpha is known to host beneficial amphipods which can subsequently be used as a food source for corals and animals that may reside within the aquarium.

Chaetomorpha can, alternatively, be replaced by an algae scrubber.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chaetomorpha.

Scientific databases

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, October 06, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.