Various types of mud substrates are used in marine aquarium systems. They are particularly useful in refugia when growing seagrasses and/or mangroves. Muds are often rich in certain essential minerals and trace
elements, which they release slowly as they break down. Due to their fine particle size, only a relatively thin layer is needed to produce an anaerobic zone, which promotes the growth of denitrifying (nitrate removing) bacteria. We might add that it provides a great home for many infaunal microfauna (e.g. small critters that burrow within soft substrates).
Miracle Mud is the registered name of a product developed by Leng Sy and made by the EcoSystem Aquarium® company. Now produced for a couple of decades, this trade name is used freely when speaking of aquarium muds in the way that Coke is used when speaking of colas. It is most likely that all of the different aquarium muds, whether manufactured or scooped from the nearest beach, contain very different stuff. Hence, for this piece, we’re going to discuss Miracle Mud in particular.
EcoSystem Aquarium’s famous mud substrate is composed of up to 80% oceanic mud from deep waters. After it is extracted, this natural material is dried on land. Then, a truly huge number of elements are added (the remaining 20% of the product). According to the manufacturer, this product includes (get this!) the following: Aluminum, antimony, barium, beryllium, bismuth, boron, bromine, cadmium, calcium, cerium, cesium, chromium, chloride, cobalt, dysprosium, erbium, europium, fluorine, gadolinium, gallium, germanium, gold, hafnium, holmium, indium, iodine, iridium, iron, lanthanum, lithium, lutetium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, niobium, osmium, palladium, phosphorus, platinum, potassium, praseodymium, rhodium, rubidium, ruthenium, rhenium, samarium, selenium, silicon, silver, sodium, strontium, sulfur, tantalum, tellurium, terbium, thallium, thorium, thulium, tin, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, ytterbium, yttrium, zinc and zirconium.
Yes, it actually contains gold. While it’s difficult to say whether all of these elements are essential to the health of marinelife, you can certainly rest assured that they are present. And, there is little worry about overdose (as from bottled trace element supplements) because of the slow-release action. Many veteran reefkeepers swear by it!