Help, corals browned out and algae everywhere!

[soapy]

The picture is of an inshore reef so it is likely has a higher 'bioload' plus I don't recall seeing a lot of large herbivores, maybe it was a bit fished out around there.

On the bright side my tank now looks just like a real reef!

[Animal-Chin]

Reefs in the wild usually have algae, we just don't like to see it in our tanks. Its totally natural though for sure.

[soapy]

That was at Cayo Santa Maria. One cool thing we did there is we walked out to a bridge on the highway that crosses the lagoon / mangrove flats and went snorkelling in there. We were swimming over thousands upon thousands of jellyfish and saw a bunch of other cool things.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

I watched a documentary about how some reefs, such as around Cuba, are getting overgrown with algae because all the big fish have been caught for human consumption and every year the fish in the marketplace are getting smaller. So overfishing is contributing to the amount of algae taking over some areas. That and I'm sure the spread of the lionfish into these non-native waters doesn't help since these voracious feeders remove a huge percentage of juvenile fish from having a chance to grow up and repopulate the reefs. Its sad really.

One of my bucket list items is to go snorkeling in a coral reef that is still relatively natural and not so altered by human activity. Better do this sooner rather than later I guess.

Friends who have been snorkeling in the Caribbean for decades tell me that the changes they have seen over time have been nothing less than heartbreaking. From massive swathes of pristine reefs populated by dozens of species of corals and tens of thousands of fish, to swimming through areas that look very much like what your photograph depicts (lots of algae, a handful of hardy corals and almost no fish.

[soapy]

Originally Posted by SeaHorse_Fanatic

I watched a documentary about how some reefs, such as around Cuba, are getting overgrown with algae because all the big fish have been caught for human consumption and every year the fish in the marketplace are getting smaller. So overfishing is contributing to the amount of algae taking over some areas. That and I'm sure the spread of the lionfish into these non-native waters doesn't help since these voracious feeders remove a huge percentage of juvenile fish from having a chance to grow up and repopulate the reefs. Its sad really.

On the flip side of that I read an article that said since they had rules about how little gas you were allowed to carry on fishing boats in Cuba, they didn't want boats making the run to Maimi, that the offshore Gardens of the Queen are in pristine condition. Going there is on live aboard dive trips.

[soapy]

We met this guy 10 feet from highway in about a foot of water:

[gobytron]

Originally Posted by soapy

We met this guy 10 feet from highway in about a foot of water:

a wild cephalopod sighting.

That would be surreal.

[soapy]

Originally Posted by gobytron

a wild cephalopod sighting.

That would be surreal.

It chased us along the shore flashing blue until it realized we were pretty big.

[soapy]

Originally Posted by SeaHorse_Fanatic

Friends who have been snorkeling in the Caribbean for decades tell me that the changes they have seen over time have been nothing less than heartbreaking. From massive swathes of pristine reefs populated by dozens of species of corals and tens of thousands of fish, to swimming through areas that look very much like what your photograph depicts (lots of algae, a handful of hardy corals and almost no fish.

Yeah I ve seen a couple of reefs in Mexico that were totally choked with green and black slimy algae.

[soapy]

Originally Posted by soapy

The picture is of an inshore reef so it is likely has a higher 'bioload' plus I don't recall seeing a lot of large herbivores, maybe it was a bit fished out around there.

On the bright side my tank now looks just like a real reef!

Actually I was just flipping back through my photos and there were lots of big tangs there. It wasn't too bad for algae really.