Z's and P's filter feeders or not

[whitetiger61]

I have been wondering about this for some time..I have always heard and read the zoa's and paly's feed off the water column..for the past month i have been target feeding mine and have noticed a uptake in growth in all my zoa's and paly's..different varations take the food different than the next one. for example..my captian america and purple death palyscomplete engulf mysis shrimp.where as my green bay packers like it diced up more finer..feel free to chime in on this subject if you have experienced this or just have a comment in general

Rick

[Jarred1]

I am almost sure that zoas and palys will take up nutrients from the water.

[mallorieGgator]

I'm not sure about them filter feeding out of the water but I do know that they seem to grow more with feeding and water movement. The reason paly's and large zoas take in larger food is because they are a larger polyp with larger mouths IMO. The smaller zoas can't eat large pieces so they only take small pieces.

[Sir Patrick]

I have found that most zoanthids can/will remove whatever nutrients they can catch out of the water column- although it is almost not noticable at all, while most palythoa will actively take large chunks fed to them.

One of the reasons that polyps are said to prefer "dirty water". I like to think they prefer higher nutrients and available steadily available food sources.

[larryandlaura]

My zoas are feed and I agree they do absorb nutrients from the water!!!!!

[MUCHO REEF]

Any of you other zoagies out there want to weigh in on this topic?

[Jarred1]

While somewhat variable, in no case does light alone supply anywhere near the total energy budget of any zoanthid. "Furthermore, much of the carbon products produced by photosynthesis are used in the production of mucus, making external sources of carbon containing compounds, in addition to non-photosynthate material imperative to the health and survival of zoanthids. Zoanthids feed on particulate matter, organic macromolecules, bacteria, plankton, and even larger prey. To what degree each food item can theoretically comprise the natural dietary intake of zoanthids is anyone's guess, but it would appear that most tank conditions are able to supply the required external nutrition to a tolerable level based on the success of colonies in the aquarium" Eric Borneman.

If you like zoas and palys you should read this article:
Reefs.org: Where Reefkeeping Begins on the Internet - Zoanthids by Eric Borneman Aquarium.Net January 1998

[MUCHO REEF]

Sorry Jarred, just back from vacation and just saw your post.

Yes, EB's article is one of my all time favorites and I love quoting it. I agree that external feeding as a secondary yet complementary source of nutrition is vital and further validates the need for medium to high but not overpowering curent and thank you for sharing my friend.

Good stuff larryandlaura and Sir P.

Great topic Whitetiger.

Mucho