PBS special on Caulerpa tonight!-General Reef Topics-3reef Forums

skennelly · 08-02-2005, 02:27 PM

I heard PBS is having a special on Caulerpa algae tonight. You can read more here.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/algae/

Gresham · 08-02-2005, 02:41 PM

Man, how may times are they going to regurgitate that piece?

Covey · 08-02-2005, 05:35 PM

It's PBS, until we pay them to make new programing. It weird that Jaques C. the father of scuba driving and early enviromentaly crusader caused the out right distruction of most of the mediterrian ecosystem.

Jay · 08-02-2005, 05:46 PM

Hows that Covey? What time does it air? I have not seen it.

Jay

Birdlady · 08-02-2005, 05:58 PM

LOL! You just missed it! At least here on the East coast...I was on at 8

skennelly · 08-02-2005, 07:06 PM

Well, I found it to be pretty damn interesting. Makes me think twice about getting caulerpa for my fuge now.

Birdlady · 08-02-2005, 08:00 PM

Well, I would love to know the science behind the tracing it back to an "aquarium cultivated species" WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?! It HAD to have come from the ocean at some point.! They totally rule out any transport by boat anchor, net fishing, etc. That 'toxic dangerous plant' came from an aquarium, and it should be banned, if you follow that logic.

I just don't quite buy the ideoligy of the whole thing...let me not go on a rant!

While I do agree, it appears problematic for sure! But Blasting it with Chlorine is acceptable??!!! What!!!

I think the little slugs are a good(better) idea. It wiped out half of my fuge overnite...somehow I got 2 as hitchikers...switched to chaeto after that

I like it better anyway.

OK, I feel better...

Matt Rogers · 08-02-2005, 09:16 PM

Sue maybe you missed it, they tested a bunch of DNA samples and the one that was a perfect match was a strain that is common in fish stores. They even traced it back from the Monaco Oceanographic museum (directly above where the first invasion was) to an aquarium in Stugart Germany back in the 70's.

For those that did not see it, they are not sure what made this strain so resilient to temperature (a tropical plant that can survive cold winters in the Med. sea!) but their theories were an aquarium brew to a hardy sample that someone picked up and propagated.

Regardless of whether you believe any of the above, we as hobbyist have a responsibility, especially those on the coasts, do be damn careful how you get rid of it. My street gutter goes to a drain that goes directly to San Francisco Bay a few blocks away. When I was whining about caulerpa in my tank a while back, I was pulling it out and putting it in my freezer for days before I threw it out in the trash. I recommend that to anyone else. Fortunately my FoxFace pounded on the rest.

Matt Rogers · 08-02-2005, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Birdlady

While I do agree, it appears problematic for sure! But Blasting it with Chlorine is acceptable??!!! What!!!

They blasted a patch in a lagoon because they thought it was better to kill all in that small area than to do nothing and have it spread up and down the California coast.

Birdlady · 08-02-2005, 09:39 PM

I know , I know.....but I feel the natural solution is probably a better end goal...

I did miss the first half anyways....

But my point is, it had to have come from some ocean somewhere. I just don't feel comfortable with PBS's one sided 'documentaries'...where had it originally been taken from? I did see that part but I forget...Is it not possible for it to have come in any other way? Even if you could prove it came from the Museum, would it not have happened anyway? Like in California? Just questions to probe the science a bit more. I am not anti-environment , just pro-education...getting the whole picture

I always throw my stuff in the trash and my tank water in my yard where it can bake in the hot hot sun or down the sewer drain, where it will be treated with lots of chlorine! I think , if you lived near a water source, then freezing it would be a good precaution.

I thought we had a 'bad word' filter on here...sorry bout that, I will fix that.