I'm actually leaning towards amphidium right now but it's more on the rocks and irritating the corals and glass rather than the sandbed...but it doesn't seem to have the beak that ostreopsis that yours does/did. @huntindoc They are pretty roundish.
Post that in the nuisance algae thread on Reef2Reef. I'm thinking small cell Amphidinium (hope not-the don't respond to UV).
Reef2Reef is saying it's Coolia but I'm not so sure... @huntindoc I work in Conway so I could bring you a sample if you are ever available during the day. I think I need better images of it. Of course, I could wait until the frag fest at Paradise Pets if needed (and if you're going).
Holler at me this weekend and we'll get better pictures with my scope. It sure looked like Coolia to me but I'm not an expert on dinos. I can for sure ID Ostreopsis though!
@huntindoc I finally was able to ID it myself! Ya...so, haven't used a microscope since college and got it tuned right and got some great pics/looks. It's definitely Coolia. That requires a UV sterilizer and daily blowing off of rocks and glass after lights out. Since I have such a small system (56 gal system vol), compared to most, I was wondering if this would work for me? https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/smart-uv-18-watt-pentair-aquatics.html I don't mind the cost if it fits the size of my tank and is effective against this particular dino. I know you have experience with UV sterilizers so you might have an opinion before I purchase. Thanks for all your help!
I have a 55 watt brute of a UV that you can borrow for as long as you need it! With my Ostreopsis I ran it 2 months (even though I didn't see any dinos after 24 hours). It's big and ugly but very effective....and hopefully only needed temporarily. That one is borderline for your tank. The recommended parameters are 1 watt/3 gallons DT volume and flow through the UV at 1-3 times the DT volume/hour.
I don't know how i'd even incorporate it into my current system due to size but i'm sure it may be doable. That would be awesome. I have no idea how to reach you outside of this forum. Let me know when this weekend...I may just bring a sample of the dino just in case lol. You're awesome and thanks for your help.
@jarjor I'll show you how I did it. Since it's only temporary, I just did a fast, down and dirty set up. You will need a card table unless you want to attach it to your stand.
Hey @huntindoc ... Thanks for all your help but I got my hands on a used 40 watt UV Sterilizer and hopefully that will do the trick! Thanks for everything!
Let me know if you change your mind! Good luck man, I know Coolia is a little harder to get rid of than Ostreopsis but I'm sure you will get it done!
@huntindoc so almost on my 3rd week of using the UV sterilizer you so graciously let me borrow. Still battling the last of the coolia dino with some daily turkey basting it back out into the water column. I wonder if the lowest setting on this 1.5 siccce pump is too fast at this point. Still getting some bubbling in the gha now.
I guess it could be. Contact time is important with UV. It also could be because Coolia doesn't as aggressively go in to the water column like my Ostreopsis does. Keep it running, keep your nutrients up and add any biodiversity (pods, etc.) that you can. I know some people have had success with dosing silicates. I have some Sponge Excel you could borrow if you want to try that.