dark red algae ?

I have a dark red something on my LR. I tried to take pictures but they wouldn't come out bright enough to see. ( cheap camera ) I can't blow it off with a turkey baster or rub it off. It is soft but not like the usual cyano which I have had before. That I could blow off into the water column. Is this cyano or something totally different?

On a side note...I have sponges of all shapes and sizes in my tank. Purple conical, neon green encrusting, white that resembles a tree, a rose colored encrusting and a bright yellow encrusting. Is this normal to have so many different types of sponges in one tank?

BTW...they are not bothering anything and are quite beautiful. The white and rose sponges are on my pistol shrimp rock. I probably couldn't get them off if I wanted to. My lil' pistol is one ornery bugger when you get too close to his cave.

 

A pic would be best, but sounds like red coraline. Luna

 

i have the same type of red algae u have. Ive had it a few times on different pieces of live rock and its hard to the touch, ive watched it for months and grows slow like coraline.
I would think luna is rite and its red coraline. im not sweatin over it

 

If cyno...definitly don't want to "blow off in water column..."

Is likely why you may be getting reoccurance.

Just about all newer tanks get some cyno cycles till everything clicks in and biofilter under complete control.

Suck up what you can with siphon hose. Increase amount and frequency of water changes and up flow if you can to algae areas.

It will pass.

 

omard,
The tank is 2+ years old. This stuff isn't like the cyano I have had in the past. I had some in this tank once and it was easy to get out and had bubbles. That stuff was loose and could be syphoned. This stuff is not hard to the touch, rather soft and spongy. I couldn't rub it off nor syphon. I could probably scrape it off with my fingers nails. I searched on the net for different types of cyano but found nothing that really matches what this stuff is. I wish I could get a darn picture that showed it but all the ones I take are blurry or dark or both.

 

Try using a flash light instead of the tank lights and dont take the pic right infront of it, take it from an angle instaed. Luna

 

I don't know if this will work but here is a picture of the rock that has the most on it.
It is more of a deep red than the purple it looks in the picture.