Asparagopsis

Asparagopsis · also called Sea Plume

Asparagopsis is a red macroalgae that rises in fuzzy, finely branched plumes and fills out into a dense bush. A. taxiformis varies from red and pink to tan or white, with soft pink or cream the usual shades. It needs turbulent water, is among the most fragile algae kept, and is rich in halogenated compounds. In lab tests exudate from A. armata killed a sea snail and a prawn at low concentrations, so keep it out of reef tanks.

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Quick facts

Category	Marine & Algae
Family	Bonnemaisoniaceae
Native origin	Warm-temperate to tropical seas worldwide; introduced to the Mediterranean
Care difficulty	Advanced
Light	Medium light
Pet toxicity	Toxicity unknown

Light

Moderate reef lighting is a fair start, since no firm figures are recorded for tanks. Wild plants grow from the intertidal into the subtidal. Color varies widely, so a pale or cream plant is not necessarily unhealthy. Research links light stress to bromoform output, so avoid sudden jumps in intensity.

Water

Standard reef parameters: 23-27 C (74-80 F), salinity ~1.025 SG, pH 8.1-8.4. No specific needs are recorded. Keep conditions very stable, since plants are fragile. Activated carbon is a sensible precaution around a large bush, given its halogenated compounds, though this is untested in tanks.

Soil & potting

Grows on solid rock from the intertidal to the subtidal, not in sand. Tie a plume base to rubble with line and keep handling to a minimum. One reference warns that unwanted growth should be stripped from rock or coral before it enters a tank, which shows it can establish on hard surfaces.

Environment — humidity, temperature, placement

Turbulent flow is essential for this alga, in a dedicated macroalgae tank at standard reef temperature, 23-27 C (74-80 F). One reference lists it as unsuitable for reef and fish-only tanks. Keep it separate from corals and from any tank you would not want it to colonize.

Propagation

Plants fill out and thicken as they age. The life cycle includes a tiny, separate tuft phase known as Falkenbergia, so the plume may not be the only stage in a tank. One reference calls it invasive in aquariums, so although plumes are fragile when moved, watch for spread.

Toxicity detail

No source covers cats or dogs, so the rating stays unknown. For tank animals the lab result is a warning: it stores bromoform and other halogenated compounds, and in 96-hour tests exudate from A. armata killed half the test animals at a concentration of about 2.8% for a sea snail and 5% for a prawn. No effect in home tanks is documented. Herbivores tend to avoid it, and one reference says no species will eat it. It can be invasive in the wild. Spain's invasive species catalogue lists A. taxiformis everywhere except the Canary Islands and bars possessing, transporting or trading live specimens, so check local rules before keeping it.

Varieties & cultivars

Natural forms are the wild species; cultivars are selectively-bred colour or variegation forms of the same plant.

Natural forms1

Sea Plume

Asparagopsis taxiformis. A fuzzy, finely branched alga that rises in a plume and fills out into a dense bush. Its color varies from red, orange and pink to tan or white, though most plants are pale reddish pink or cream.

Keep it out of reef tanks: one reference lists it as unsuitable for reef and fish-only tanks and invasive in aquariums. It stores bromoform and other halogenated compounds. Turbulent flow is essential for this one. One of the most fragile macroalgae, so handle it as little as possible.