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Smoking!? 🤷‍♂️

MattT34

Member
Joined
14 Jul 2020
Messages
27
Location
Uk
Hi All!
Very much new to this whole world so ignore me if I'm asking the obvious.

I have a heavily planted low tech caridina shrimp tank no C02 or ferts just shrimp and water, I let the tank do as it pleases as I love the over grown natural effect.

I've just noticed what appears to be smoke (obviously not actually smoke under water) coming from my moss.

I heard of 'pearling' on the various YouTube and Instagram accounts I follow and was curious as to weather this is a moss version or similar?
I've took the best photos I could.
What ever it was it looked cool and took me by surprise stopped after a minute or two of observing.
IMG_20200903_224510.jpg
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I did see this before some years back at another forum... :) Forgot about the replies and if somebody had an explanation...

Obviously it's respiration/gas exchange or another substance... Plants do not only respirate gasses it also can release oils and proteins and obviously as shown it can do this with noticeable amounts. Smelling plants are a good example, such as Basil. You don't really smell it but strike it and suddenly it releases a wonderful smell. These are the essential oils it throws out when stroked by hand or the wind.

Personally I've never seen plants misting or smoking as you say, but I have experienced some plant leaves suddenly releasing a stream of tiny bubbles for quite a long time looking like a miniature airstone. At first, I couldn't believe it was from the plant and thought it came from the substrate. But looking really close it definitively was the leaves doing that.

It can only mean that plants at times can have a rather fast metabolism... :cool: Being so silent and steady but racing inside...

Here is such another example occurring after a water change.


Could also be an ionic reaction effect from the water... Different ionic charges meeting. Think of the bubbles created when you throw something like calcium in acid... :)
 
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