# Lace Rock Lichen



## TedL (Feb 1, 2009)

I put some lace rock in my tank yesterday. Some if it had a yellow lichen on it. I assumed it was ok. Today is has a clear cloudy area over the top of the lichen. Anyone know if this is ok?

Thanks!


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

its fine, juss siphon it out problem solved


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## vaypourus (May 20, 2008)

A lichen is a combination of fungus and algae/c-bacteria. Since you are in the midwest, it could very likely be Vulpicida sp. if it is yellow and scale like. If it is a species of Vulpicida, you are going to want to remove it from the tank, as some varieties of this lichen produced toxic chemicals that are harmful to animals. American indians from the midwest used these lichens to poison larger animals during hunting...imagine what a much smaller concentration could do to your tank 

My guess is that the white cloudy stuff you are seeing in a mass of bacteria eating the organic matter that you have brought into the tank (ie rotting lichen and whatever else was on the rock). A general rule of thumb is that you NOT bring organics into the tank. Rocks added to the tank should be scrubbed and boiled to ensure that you aren't bringing any dead or living stuff into your ecosystem.

If it were me, I'd remove the rock, scrape the lichens, moss, dirt, etc off, give it a good boiled, and replace it back into the tank. While they could be okay (and I'm sure you'll hear a lot of people say "I have done it a million times and not experienced any problems!") this could be the time that something does come of it. The chances of losing even one (or more fish) seems too great for me.


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

ehhh.....all that being said more than likely it was juss some moss or mold growing on the rock when it was burried or wherever it was ....just siphon it off the rocks and ull be fine IMO.


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## Stickzula (Sep 14, 2007)

I've had that white hairlike stuff growing on lichen before. I did a bunch of research and the general answer was that it is a harmless fungus that is eating the lichen or other organic matter. You can remove the rock(s) and scrub all of the organic matter off or you can leave it in the tank and let the fungus remove it for you. I chose the latter. It took about a month and once there was nothing left for the fungus to consume, it dissapeared. Some algae eaters will nibble on it, but none of my fish were interested in it as a meal. You can also get this fungus stuff if you overfeed and leave decaying food in the tank. The fungus itself is not harmful, but the organic matter could be. My guess however, is that if it were toxic it would poison the fungus and it would die off leaving only the lichen.


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## xalow (May 10, 2007)

Id remove the lichen from the rock personally. It is going to rot into your water eventually anyways. Though from what I have read and in my own experiences after siphoning similar fungi they typically do not come back.


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## kfig7 (Nov 24, 2008)

I've been using lace rock for years and never remove the lichen when I put new pieces in tank. Never had a problem at all.


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## TedL (Feb 1, 2009)

Just to give everyone an update, the cloudy stuff on top of the lichen went away and all is fine. I actually like the lichen b/c it adds some color to the lace rock.


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