Marimo
Aegagropila linnaei
The algae Aegagropila linnaei is a popular aquarium plant. A well-known synonym is Cladophora aegagropila.
Name
As an aquarium plant, it is known as " moss ball " or " ball seaweed ". At its Japanese natural location it is called Marimo (Japanese毬 藻). She is also called by the name of Cladophora - ball or English as a lake ball. It is a kind of filamentous green algae ( Chlorophyta ), which are native to a number of lakes in the northern hemisphere. However, this name refers only to a rather rare growth form, in which the algae threads are woven together into large green balls with a velvety surface. Natural occurrence of such spherical colonies are only known from Iceland, Ukraine, Japan ( Hokkaido ) and Estonia. In the aquarium this growth form is mainly used.
Classification and nomenclature
The moss balls were first detected in 1820 by Anton Sauter in Mondsee in Austria. The genus was Aegagropila of FT Kützing (1843 ), made with this species under the name A. linnaei as indicator species, with reference to their form spherical aggregations. All species were classified in 1849 by the same author in the subgenus of the genus Cladophora Aegagropila. A. linnaei was therefore as Cladophora aegagropila (L.) Rabenhorst and Cl. sauteri ( Nees ex Kütz. ) Kütz. in genus Cladophora.
Extensive DNA analysis in 2002 led to a return to the old name Aegagropila linnaei. The presence of chitin in the cell walls of different species of this Cladophora.
The plant received its Japanese name Marimo by the Japanese botanist Tatsuhiko Kawakami (川 上 龙 彦) in 1898. Mari is a bouncing toy ball. Mo is a collective term for plants that grow in the water. The name of the indigenous Ainu is torasampe ( to = lake, rasampe = monster) or tokarip ( kari = move in a circle, p = Objektsuffix or Karip = sphere).
In Iceland, the balls have kúluskítur ( Kula = ball skítur = any kind of weed that gets caught in the fishing nets ) obtained from the fishermen at Mývatn lake its name.
Growth forms
There are three forms of this type of algae growth
Ecology
Marimo colonies in Lake Akan in Hokkaido and in the Lake Mývatn in Iceland are among the strangest plant communities on earth. Their existence depends on the adaptation of the species to low light, combined with the dynamic interaction of wind-driven currents, the lighting course, the hydro-morphology of the lake, the bottom substrate and sedimentation from.
The growth rate of the algae ball depends on light and nutrients, in the middle, it is about 5 mm per year. In Lake Akan they are very large, up to 20-30 cm. There are dense colonies of about 12 cm large balls that form well-defined spots on the lake bottom at depths 2-2 ½ m. The colonies were discovered in 1897 and have since lost considerable size. The round shape of Marimo is mainly caused by soft waves or currents that rotate the balls occasionally.
When the sun shines, it also comes to increased photosynthesis and formation of oxygen bubbles so that the algae pad ascend towards the water surface, at least in the aquarium from a body of water. By dusk, they sink back down slowly to the ground. Free floating in the water balls can be produced by introducing small floats made of plastic, the balls can be held depending on the time at the surface and at the bottom.
The moss balls are round green, so that photosynthesis takes place independently of the position of the balls. Inside the ball is also provided with green and chloroplasts in the resting stage, which are active within hours if the ball breaks apart.
They clean the shafts also of detritus. Because some colonies have 2 or even 3 layers of balls over each other, the waves are needed in order to mix them so that each ball regularly comes to light. The spherical shape has the least surface to volume ratio, which is not optimal for plant photosynthesis. This limits the possible size of the balls. The natural increase of the balls is poorly understood. You could grow algae tufts that grow on rocks in the littoral zone, or from broken balls ( as in the case of Akansees or in breeding for the aquarium ).
Conservation
The rapidly shrinking population of Mývatn is a particular problem. For unknown reasons, some of the main colonies have disappeared in the recent years.
At Lake Akan a great effort to maintain the algae balls are made. This includes the annual three-day Marimo Festival, where the Ainu play an important role. Because of their attractive form the balls also serve as visual aids for education environmentally conscious behavior. You have certain similarities with the Earth, as they are green and round and have to turn to get light from all sides. In Japan Marimo is a nature reserve and has been declared a natural treasure of Japan. Small balls which are sold as souvenirs are hand rolled from the free flooding threads. It tells the buyer that the plant make a wish come true with good care. Both the Mývatn and the Lake Akan are protected, the first as a nature reserve, the second as a national park.
Use in the aquarium
First Imports to Western Europe, there were in the 1970s, thereafter almost to disappear. Moss balls are offered in Central Europe for several years again reinforced in the pet trade. Demand may also be due to the increased retention of freshwater prawns which coincides with the launch. They graze on the balls preferred. However, the literature on these plants is still scarce.
In general, the moss balls thrive in cold water aquariums quite a number of years. Their growth is very slow and is only a few millimeters per year. In tropical aquariums, where ever- present temperatures above 27 degrees, some aquarists report about a " falling apart " of the plant. Perhaps this is also due to old algae pad.
Special lighting requirements do not represent moss balls. It is advantageous, however, if they are occasionally turned or if they can roll freely on the ground. Sensitive they react to the deposition of mulch and detritus. Some aquarists rinse the algae pad fortnightly in warm water carefully. Equally sensitive they react to an attack by blue-green algae. pH values between 7 and 7.5 seem to get them best.
In pet shops they are sometimes recommended as an effective remedy for nitrite and nitrate loads. However, the plant itself is no longer contributes to the reduction of these substances in the water than do other plants. Advantageously, however, it is surely that can settle in the fine hairs algae bacteria that reduce these substances in the water. The stocking an aquarium with these algae pad, however, is not a substitute for a water filtering even for a partial water change.
Because of the sensitivity to the deposition of mulch and debris, they should not be kept together with Gründel ligand fishing. Catfish can use the balls for depositing the spawn. For owners of small shrimp species, such as the Yamatonuma shrimp, put moss balls is an alternative to Java moss overgrown like the aquarium and other plants covering. You search the fine hairs algae as intense after detritus as they do in Java moss.
Trivia
- Marimo means a character from the manga series One Piece. There is also a nickname of the character Roronoa Zoro.
- In an episode of the anime series Sailor Moon a monster called Akan emerges, named after the Lake Akan in Japan, grown in the Marimo and just used it as a weapon against his opponents.