Pet Forum / Aquaria / Marine Reef / February 2005

I agree Billy, can you support your one word answer, we learn nothing from
one word answers.  Give us some or one of the following: data, examples,
reasons and even opinion, please.

Thanks
Chip

Hi Billy,

First off, I'm NOT the guy with the one word answer!

Here's the deal: Animals with zooxanthellae can meet, under the proper
circumstances, all of their energy needs from the excess sugar produced by
their symbionts. That's not the same as not needing other nutrition. In
order to grow and reproduce they need protein and that is only available
from outside food (prey). Shown below is an excerpt from an article by Dr.
Ron Shimek that explains their needs in far more detail:

<<People tend to believe that animals with zooxanthellae don't need to be
fed or fed very much. This is definitely not the case. Zooxanthellae may
provide nutrition to a sea anemone, but the zooxanthellae, in turn, need
many chemicals, such as nitrogenous compounds, available only from their
hosts and which the hosts get only from their food. Additionally, the
anemones acquire necessary mineral and proteinaceous materials from their
diets, not from zooxanthellae.>>

The entire article can be found here:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?I2B13529A

Verbosely yours,

TPG