Bioluminescent Dinoflagellates?

[tommoDMC]

First of all, I apologise for my ignorance and the presumptions I take with my post. However, I figure that my query is outlandish enough that only a dedicated aquarium forum would have the knowledgeable capacity to answer it.

My question, as hinted at in the title, is:

Most of us have seen the famous picture depicting a bioluminescent red tide shown here: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.] [scroll down]. What I'm curious about is whether or not a specifically-cultivated aquarium [devoid of other life and fed only with nutrients, phosphorous etc] could, with the right algae culture, produce a colony of dinoflagellates that could be prompted into bioluminescent displays?

If so, what are the constraints -- particular species of algae, uncertain triggers for the spectacle, etc?

Cheers,
Tom.

(Strange post, I know, but my interest is piqued)

[Fishalicious]

Very interesting question to which unfortunately I have no answer... I have not medled with salt water yet...

Here is a site with some info: [Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

It is more than possible to keep them in an aqua but that they can quickly turn into a huge pest and poison the fish...

Here a bit from an article online:
Dinoflagellates can become a real pest in aquariums, and have caused more than one hobbyist to completely tear down and sterilize his or her aquarium. This tiny, single-celled protozoan can multiply into large mats of brown, filamentous growths, often with air bubbles attached to rising filaments. When examined under the microscope they look like very tiny spheres embedded in a gelatinous goo!

There is no sure-fire way to rid an aquarium of this plague, and often it is merely the shock of a change that causes them to disappear. Treatments have included raising the pH to 8.5 for several weeks, dropping the specific gravity to 1.016 rapidly and keeping it there for a few weeks, raising or lowering the temperature, using phosphate-lowering compounds, and turning off the lights for a few days to a week. Sometimes a combination of the above will cause a positive result. Unfortunately, there does not seem to be any organisms that will eat these beasties either!

As you can probably tell, many of the above options carry their own dangers for the other inhabitants of the tank, but drastic problems sometimes require drastic efforts. You may lose all your animals or you may be successful. The alternative, however, is to do nothing, and that will eventually lead to a very nice display of dinoflagellates and little else.


I am sure more salt water aqua keepers here will have more info...

[tommoDMC]

I should have clarified, you wouldn't be raising any fish in the tank, you'd be cultivating the algae pretty much specifically for the light show effect. So you don't need to worry about keeping fish alive etc.

The problem is also how to determine if there are certain varieties that emit light, or if there's a certain trigger for it. The phenomena does seem to be somewhat unexplained at this point in time, too.

[Fishalicious]

well if no fish are going in it looks like it would be very easy to achieve seeing most salt water aqua keepers are trying to get rid of them... :thumb:

Hopefully a salt water aqua person will have more info for you about them (the circumstances which are ideal for dinoflagellates)

[tommoDMC]

They'd be easy to keep once they're in, but without fish how would I introduce the 'contamination'? Triggering the bioluminescence worries me as well. Is there a more appropriate forum I should have posted this in?

[Fishalicious]

You would probably get more answers on a Marine Biology forum ;) ;)

I would be worried about triggering it as well as it is very poisinous...

Sorry I cannot be of more help...