Beautiful Encrusting Algae But There’s A Small Downside

Marine aquarists try very hard to create a beautiful aquarium – whether the system is fish only or reef that is the target. These attempts are generally successful and often the picture is enhanced by Mother Nature. Mother Nature obviously provides the ‘eye targets’, the colourful fish and corals.

In the aquarium are usually rocks – whether fish only or reef this could be to provide homes and also be decorative. Both, particularly reef, could be ‘living rock’ for biological filtration. This rock is normally interesting in shape and over time provides a base for algae growth.

At this point the assumption is that the aquarist has properly maintained seawater quality which in turn means that stocking levels are acceptable. It’s also assumed that lighting is adequate.

Encrusting algae, often known as coralline algae which is more accurate, is lovely. It can cover upper surfaces of rocks and make a real contribution to the overall aquarium picture. Often it is introduced to the aquarium on live rock from the dealer or another aquarist. Helpfully, ordinary maintenance seems to assist in its spread.

I’ve taken some photos from areas in my aquarium (I’m not an expert on photography so hopefully they’re adequate!). The heading photo has nothing to do with the subject, it’s just that my flame angel (Centropyge loriculus) cruised by and I couldn’t resist pressing the button.

The next two photos show interesting formations created by the algae as it grows. As is often the case there is beauty in the detail. There is much more in the aquarium that isn’t shown.

Ok, so what’s this downside that has been mentioned? There’s always a price to be paid for anything, and the price demanded for this algae is in an extension of maintenance. However, this isn’t much.

The algae not only uses rocks as a base, it’s quite happy to use glass. On the rear glass this doesn’t matter, and in my case the left hand glass can be left as well. However, the other viewing glasses need to be cleaned periodically. Of course this is already done to deal with the green stuff that accumulates but unfortunately a magnet cleaner doesn’t usually remove the encrusting algae. Therefore a razor cleaner is the best tool.

The next two photos show growth on a corner and on a horizontal glass pump support. Coralline algae seems to like growing in the corners of the aquarium – or at least it does in mine. Cleaning is not a problem with a razor but make sure the razor is sharp and also have regard to the silicone joints if there are any.

Calcium testing is normally carried out where there is a known need for it. There is another test that is generally beneficial particularly with a reef and that is alkalinity. I maintain my alkalinity at about 4.0 meq/l (it drops off slowly, I test at routine seawater changes) and this seems to benefit the encrusting algae – not only the coralline but other types present as well. Maintaining a higher alkalinity is considered to be desirable with a reef system but is not essential.

It has been mentioned that routine maintenance could assist with the spread of coralline algae. When the algae is being scraped off the glass it disperses into the seawater and this seems to generate further growth in other areas of the aquarium, though I have never seen any scientific or other confirmation of this.

One more concern has been raised in the past – does the coralline algae presence on live rock reduce the effectiveness of live rock filtration. Bacteria essential to the well-being of the livestock dwell within the rock so could seawater fail to reach the bacteria causing their demise followed by serious problems? ‘No’ has to be the answer. Though, as far as I know, there hasn’t been serious or scientific testing of this question there hasn’t been a reported failure of filtration, again as far as I know. There are marine aquarists far and wide who are delighted with the presence of the algae. Personally I’m also delighted and have never had a problem with filtration because of the algae presence.

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Aggression On The Reef

This conjures up thoughts of sharks cruising menacingly over the reef looking for lunch, or perhaps just smaller fish arguing over a morsel. This all happens but in this case its corals.

Corals could be aggressive, a known fact. This is how they defend their space and obtain more. Some corals are more aggressive than others as is the usual case with Mother Nature.

As with fish, corals don’t change their habits in the aquarium. All things being equal, the corals are placed into a well suited environment well spaced from other corals. They settle, the time needed for this varies, and once the settling period is over they begin to grow.

In a reef aquarium the aquarist watches for growth because in the first place it’s pleasing – it indicates that the conditions are to the corals liking. From this growth the aquarist may well take cuttings (‘frags’) which are offered to others thus reducing to an extent the pressure on the wild reefs. Growth could cause problems which need to be watched for. For example a reduction in seawater flow could cause problems for any coral downstream which needs higher flow. Another example is light – a coral may extend enough to throw another coral into shade, meaning the other coral suffers.

Aggression should not be overlooked either. It’s said that if a reef looks overcrowded it probably is, though this is general and confusing particularly to a beginner. When a reef is set up corals should be placed so that they do not touch taking expansion (if any) into account. This applies particularly to unrelated species. This is because corals are able to fight for territory, some extending stinging tentacles to damage their neighours. Even though a coral is considered to be benign overall, there could well be other means that territory is gained, such as creeping forward on a mat.

If signs of aggression are noticed, which could be a clearly damaged coral with one side withering or losing colour, then something needs to be done. Perhaps cutting (‘fragging’) could take place, the cut piece being grown on somewhere else or handed on to another aquarist or dealer. Perhaps the offending coral could be moved entirely, though care needs to be taken that the coral doesn’t lose the required intensity of light and seawater flow.

In my aquarium I fairly regularly need to do some work because of coral growth. Perhaps a species is becoming too overcrowded or too large. Normally very sharp scissors plus yours truly deals with the ‘problem’. It’s interesting to see the different ways corals can be aggressive and spread.

I’ve taken three photographs of corals on my reef (I apologise for any quality shortcomings). There’s nothing particularly special about them but they show territorial behavior generally, though there aren’t any signs of serious damaging aggression as the corals are considered benign.

The first shows green star polyps (Pachyclavularia sp) and mushrooms (Rhodactis sp?) that have bumped into each other. This collision happened over a quite lengthy period of time, though green star polyps do spread quickly on a mat. Where the two types are together there doesn’t appear to be much movement, but the stars polyps are beginning to go around the outside edges. Is this an overpowering or avoidance strategy I wonder? There doesn’t seem to be any damage at the adjacent site to either coral. I suspect, but don’t know as yet, that the star polyps will attempt to overgrow the mushrooms. We’ll see.

The next photo doesn’t really show aggression as such, its more taking advantage of additional territory that’s available. The rock used to be covered in green star polyps but, as is sometimes the case, these died back leaving bare rock (they have now started re-growth). Toadstool corals (Sarcophyton sp) have taken hold on the bare surface and are spreading. The tiny corals appeared fairly quickly, perhaps in two or three weeks after the rock area became available and grew quickly. This is not aggression as generally understood, but perhaps could be considered aggressive opportunism. If the green star polyps grow back over the remaining rock area I don’t expect any aggression problems between the two. I do expect to have to interfere with the toadstool’s growth and number at some point.

The final photo shows mushrooms (Rhodactis sp?) and cabbage coral (Sinularia dura). The mushrooms have nearly encircled the cabbage coral and touch on occasion when seawater flow causes it. Neither of the two types is showing any sign of distress. The cabbage coral is a well known very hardy coral – it could be called tough as old boots! Maybe it shrugs off as inconsequential the presence of the mushrooms. The mushrooms for their part may not perceive any threat whatsoever and continue to colonize territory unperturbed.

There are many examples of coral aggression that are not as mild and well-mannered as those given. Many will have seen time-lapse photography showing battles in progress.

All the aquarist needs to do is be aware, which is the watchword for marine aquarium keeping.

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Soon Be Back I Hope!

Unfortunately, in addition to the problems outlined earlier a further problem arose.

Sadly, our other grandmother fell over and broke a hip. She was admitted to hospital, had an operation and was discharged. She was unable to return home and is now in a care home where she appears to be settling in well.

Very sadly we lost the first grandmother.

All of this has meant that considerable time has been needed for family etc and dealing with two no longer needed homes.

Anyway, rough waters seem to be a little calmer now and I hope to be able to submit a few blogs as time passes and before long. I’ve tried to keep up with the comments and the forum.

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The Long Loud Silence

I thought I’d add my short piece to Peter’s words.

Since going on holiday for two weeks (in Arizona) all sorts have happened. As Peter has indicated, one of the two much loved grandmas has seriously deteriorated and now has to have 24 hour care. The time and work involved in making the necessary arrangements is quite amazing, though certainly not resented – grandma has given so much to my generation and particularly to my son Peter’s, and also to my grandchildren.

Things are ‘smoothing out’ now so life isn’t quite so hectic. I’ve managed to respond to comments on the blog and to entries on the forum.

My reef aquarium is doing well. I’ve just done a routine seawater change and the fish as usual attempted to obtain food by begging. The time sequence – that is the time periods that the aquarium receives for maintenance – has been completely out but it’s coming back on track.

As Peter says, we’ll start writing again soon. It’ll probably be me first as Peter is embroiled in projects and work considerations. I keep my fingers crossed for him.

So thanks for your patience.

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We’re Still Here – But Very Busy At The Moment!

I thought that I would pop a post out to explain why we have not posted any articles recently.

Myself and John are both very busy at the moment but for two very different reasons!

I have found myself in a position where the company I work for has a very doubtful future and I am spending a lot of my time trying to keep my job. I am working long hours to try and impress etc so that I can hopefully be seen as as asset to the company. Unfortunately in the current climate there are not a lot of other positions in my field available and the ones which are available would involve me either working away from home or relocating the family – neither of which I am willing to do. I am working on other ventures at the moment as well to try and safeguard a future for myself and my family which is taking a lot of time when I am not performing my ‘day job’. When you mix in spending time with my family as well as doing the various jobs required around the home it does not leave a lot of time for other things.

I also had to make a hard decision. In an attempt to save money to put away for the future we have cut back on various things – one of which was my reef tank. Whilst I still have a huge passion for this hobby I am now reefless. It broke my heart to see it go but when things settle I know that I will start a new one.

John on the other hand, whilst retired is also very busy. John’s sons, myself and Michael live in the same area and John looks after both of our children – taking them to and from school, looking after them during school holidays etc. He is also looking after two aging ladies – my grandmothers – his own and his wifes (my mums) mothers. They are both now at an age where they need to be cared for and they are both doing a huge amount of work looking after them. It really is a shame to see people who I look up to and respect end up as what can only be said as being children again. They need to and will spend the rest of their lives with dignity and respect from everyone who knows them and they cannot have anyone better looking after them than my mum and dad. The passion and energy that they both show is truly amazing.

John still has his reef tank and it still looks as fabulous as ever. John pops onto Aquarists Online as often as he possibly can and answers questions in the forum as well as comments left on the site but at the moment when he is not busy looking after other people he is rather tired.

So please stick with us – there is a lot of information as well as other features on Aquarists Online and we will be back to post more content as soon as we possibly can – we promise.

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A Large Aquarium Re-Start

There are all sorts of aquarium sizes that are kept at home, though none as large as can be seen at a public aquarium as far as I know.

Successful small aquariums from the very small 10 gallons to the larger 50 gallons, fish only or reef, are very beautiful to look at as a whole, but their main impact is in the detail particularly with a reef. Even in a very small aquarium, provided it is a well aged system, there are growths of different algae, sometimes different corals popping up, existing corals spreading, miniature life such as tiny worms waving around looking for food and tiny shrimps foraging about particularly at night. At night small snails could appear then hide away again when dawn arrives. There’s often more.

With larger aquariums the impact is not just the beauty but the eye filling dimensions. I would guess that if asked a marine aquarist would normally advise that a larger aquarium would be on their shopping list ‘if only’. It cannot be denied that a fish only system with many fish and some of them larger species such as angels is a real spectacle. A properly designed and stocked reef system, well, that is truly something. It appears as if the reef has been sliced out of the wild and placed in the aquarium complete with life. It is true of course that any captive reef doesn’t have the diversity of Mother Nature’s own, but let’s not start nit picking. Again, close inspection should reveal all sorts of interesting items as in the previous paragraph but probably more so. Most viewers however wouldn’t be too concerned about small detail; the overall view would be the one to watch.

There is a large aquarium that is accepted as one of the best. It belongs to David Saxby and can certainly be described as large. Many marine aquarists are aware of it and have watched the video of the original aquarium, lovely as it was. Was? Yes, the aquarium has been stripped down and re-started so that the livestock could be altered. A new video has been produced that is very watchable and well made. There are some lovely fish to be seen, anthias and yellow tangs seems to be a favourite – watch out for the different coloured one. There’s also one of my favourite fish, the copperband butterfly.

As said the video is worth watching and is relaxing, so sit back and just enjoy. Here it is:

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Marine Dragons

We’ve all heard of dragons haven’t we? When we were children we read or had read to us stories about dragons, big and fearsome creatures that were real monsters of the mind. They could fly and usually could breathe fire. Now we’re adults it’s all fantasy of course, a part of children’s stories or sci-fi movies. As often as not the dragons are the bad guys.

We used to have dinosaurs of all sorts, flying, land and sea based ones. They could be small or large – how about that favourite of many, the Tyranosaurus rex?

There is a ‘dragon’ in the sea though it isn’t one really it’s a sea horse known as a ‘leafy dragon’. Not what the word ‘dragon’ really intended, nor was the word intended for those ladies who eat people for breakfast!

If you went to Romania what would you expect – hmm, how about Dracula, but no, that’s the wrong country.

So did they exist at all, dragons? The answer is a maybe – maybe? Have a look at the video and see what you think. Look at the shape, the wings…

Just imagine having a peaceful swim and one appeared, what would your reaction be?

Here’s the video, you’ll need to wait a few seconds for the advertisement to clear:

http://animal.discovery.com/videos/dragons-a-fantsay-made-real-aqua-dragon.html

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What Is An Invertebrate?

To avoid becoming a squishy heap on the ground humans have a skeleton. Quite a good invention really, not having a skeleton would cause quite a few difficult problems.

Humans aren’t alone with the possession of a skeleton of course; there are all sorts of life forms that have one too, how about the elephant or man’s best friend the dog as just two examples.

Skeletons are not essential to life however; there are creatures that don’t use one at all. As a non-scientist I can say that they use a different method to maintain their body shape, I’m not sure how a scientist would put it. For example a shrimp has a hard outer shell rather than an inner skeleton.

Vertebrates, those that have a skeleton, are vastly outnumbered in the world. It is estimated that vertebrates are around 3% of the life forms in the world. It follows that a massive 97% (I just had to demonstrate my mathematical abilities) are invertebrates.

There are land dwelling insects such as spiders and worms, examples of well known invertebrates. In the cold sea there are huge numbers of plankton, anemones, sponges etc. The warm seas contain many better known (to the marine aquarist) invertebrate species, including filter feeding worms, shrimps, corals and sometimes very large anemones. It is with some anemones of course that the representatives of the vertebrate/invertebrate world have combined forces to mutual advantage; these are the clown fish with their selected hosts. There are other examples of this life style.

Invertebrates are very adaptable as demonstrated by the discovery of volcanic activity deep in the sea well beyond the sun’s light. Scientists used to accept that life basically depends on the availability of light from the sun, an example of which is that plant life uses the sun’s light to photosynthesize and grow, and then the plant life is eaten by a herbivore from which energy is obtained. Herbivores are then the prey for carnivores. They all basically depend on the plants and the sun. This belief has been changed by the life found near this deep volcanic activity, including filter feeding worms, mollusks, bacteria and crabs which depend not on the sun’s light but on heat and chemicals.*

Anyway marine aquarists, or rather those who maintain a reef system, keep various types of invertebrate including shrimps, corals, sponges, anemones, filter feeding worms etc. These very interesting life forms only ask for a few things for success, including high quality seawater, for the majority of corals and some others sufficient light of the correct spectrum, space to grow and freedom from predation. It is usually important to place for example corals in a position where they receive sufficient seawater flow.

It is worthwhile noting that all marine aquariums, big or small, fish only or reef, depend on invertebrates for their health and life. The bio-filtration system, whether this is live rock or canister filters, contains bacteria that deal with the toxins ammonia and nitrite. Without these bacteria the life in the aquarium would die. With live rock, further bacteria should be able to deal with the sometimes troublesome nitrate.

Those aquarists who make use of natural live rock could discover that they have invertebrate life forms in their aquariums that they didn’t import themselves or at least not intentionally. Some such as filter feeding worms could be welcome. Others such as the Aiptasia anemone are not welcome. The Mantis shrimp is another, though in this case it is worth keeping but needs re-housing to an area where problems won’t arise.

Invertebrates provide the aquarist with a chance to create a living reef at home, be this large or small, though compared to Mother Nature’s creations all home reefs are miniscule. Nevertheless, a successful home reef is wonderful to see.

(* Reference: Marine Invertebrates. Martyn Haywood & Sue Wells)

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Goldfish And Marine Aquariums

I’ve been involved with aquariums for 40 years or more and no, I’m not going to try advising the secret of keeping goldfish in salt water! What I’m going to do is remember, if I may.

Over 40 years ago I had nothing to do with fish. What did I do with my time I wonder – well, I had two children, Michael and Peter. As is normal we ended up one day at a fair and yes, there was a goldfish stall, throw a hoop or something similar. My boys must have been good shots because we ended up with a couple of goldfish, the common variety, in a plastic bag. They had instantly joined the family and so a small plastic aquarium was obtained on the same day. Once home into the aquarium they went. Michael and Peter were overjoyed. It must have been at least a whole week before they lost interest!

So there they were, these two goldfish, in their small aquarium on a shelf. For a while nothing changed and then I added some gravel as it didn’t look natural. A while later I added a couple of plastic plants. Now things were so much better. The fish seemed to enjoy nosing about in the gravel. Guess who was in charge of cleaning and it wasn’t Michael or Peter!

Then I decided – and this I reckon is where I became doomed to my fate – the fish would be happier in a bigger aquarium, so they got one 24″ long. It came off the shelf and stood on a more solid work surface in the kitchen.

Then I decided it would be better to have tropical fish (the addiction was getting a grip). I kept standard tropicals for a while and still used plastic plants. The fish were fine.

Then I saw my first marines, this would be quite a while later, about 5 years after the first goldfish appeared. They were in a pet shop and I learned they were damsels. What colours, wow! I didn’t buy damsels once the decision had been made to keep marines; I obtained two common clowns (Amphiprion ocellaris). These were kept in a slightly larger aquarium, 30″, which sat in the same place as had the 24″.

Since that time I’ve travelled down the road in the same way that so many others have. That first small marine aquarium which was fish only became larger and as time passed contained a variety of fish. All were reasonably successful and I don’t recall any serious problems except one. This was with a juvenile emperor angel (Pomacanthus imperator) about 3″ or so in length. It was so lovely I was quite awestruck. It seemed very happy in a 4 ft aquarium which had a reef and several soft corals. Then one day I found it lying upright against the front glass. Close observation showed it was breathing quite heavily and I suspected white spot or velvet, two serious diseases with marines. As the fish wasn’t moving I was able to inspect it with a magnifying glass but couldn’t see anything. Seawater testing indicated all parameters as being fully acceptable. Strangely, no other fish displayed any symptoms. Eventually the fish died and it affected me considerably, feeling quite guilty of losing a fish that had been taken from the wild and had died in my care. I was not as experienced as I am now of course, and currently I would have investigated further.

On I went in the hobby and eventually graduated to a full blown reef aquarium. The first one was built into a wall like a picture, with a sump (a 30″ aquarium). The aquarium became larger (I filled in the hole in the wall) until, calamity, we moved house. This was 10 years ago.

An aquarium was inevitable though, the one I have now is smaller than that at the previous address because of the space available. Peter kindly purchased it for me, and I made the cabinet and hood and fitted all the bits and pieces.

It’s a soft coral reef which has been running for 7 years (I know this as I keep a notebook). I love soft corals, the pastel colours and the way some of them sway in the seawater currents. It’s lit by a bank of three marine white fluorescent tubes, and two blue (actinic) tubes. The tubes are timed for a ‘dawn’ and ‘dusk’ sequence, in the morning the blues come on first then the whites, and vice versa when they go off. Seawater movement is created by two powerheads, arranged to produce the necessary random chaotic flow type. The bio-filtration was by two Eheim Ecco canister filters containing sintered glass, this could seem a bit backward to some but it worked well. Any nitrate presence was dealt with by a home made hang-on sulphur based denitrator and routine seawater changes.

The reef is constructed of inert dead rock with the name ‘Grotto Rock’, I don’t know why as it wasn’t from any grotto. The rock is very porous which is good for bacteria populations. It was excellent for the purpose with its various shapes, and many caves and crevices were formed. The reef sits on a plastic grate about 1¼” or so above the base glass. Another powerhead pumps seawater under the reef (below the grate) through a multi-dispersal pipe, which has successfully kept the underside more or less clean and of course has kept the lower regions oxygenated and prevented temperature stratification. Once the reef had been constructed the net gallonage of the system was 43.

I also constructed a hang-on anti-phosphate filter filled with a well known media, and this has operated from the beginning.

There is also a hang-on protein skimmer, a Red Sea ‘Prism’. This isn’t the world’s best skimmer but it does a sufficiently efficient job probably because of the low fish load. There could be some DOM (dissolved organic matter) that could have been removed, but perhaps it is helping to feed the corals. Let’s not get into that as it’s another subject.

Apart from various corals there are only two fish, a Flame Angel (Centropyge loriculus) and a Fijian Damsel (Chrysiptera cyanea). I believe that with reef systems it is better to under stock than fully stock (although there is nothing really wrong with the latter if done properly and growth is taken into account). This is because of seawater as it is easier to maintain at high quality with less fish. It’s a matter of personal opinion and taste. Routine seawater changes are still completed.

I have a very small DSB (deep sand bed) which is not large enough to have any particular impact on the aquarium; it was constructed purely out of interest. It is successful and, particularly at night, numerous tiny life forms can be seen. In the main aquarium quite a large number of snails are seen at night, and fortunately they are not the troublesome variety.

The canister filters are still running though the media has been removed. This happened a good while ago because I suspected the dead rock had changed to live. The rock, with all the growths on it, looks very similar to the live variety. I began to wonder about the rock as there wasn’t ever a trace of nitrate when the seawater was tested. Admittedly there was a denitrator but was it that efficient? Also of course routine seawater changes were being done.

To check I stopped the denitrator. Over three months of testing there wasn’t a trace of nitrate so the denitrator wasn’t changing anything. It remains switched off though it hasn’t been removed (I’m maybe too lazy!). Then I tested the seawater before a routine change, still no trace of nitrate. Then I left the seawater unchanged for three weeks, still no trace. So I began to remove the bio-media from the canisters, one was emptied entirely, and then the system was left for two weeks. There wasn’t a trace of ammonia, nitrite or nitrate at weekly testing. Then I removed ½ of the bio-media from the other canister, still no change. Now the final media was removed, though this made me nervous there wasn’t any change whatsoever. The rock had become ‘live’.

As the rock was porous the bacteria that deal with the toxins ammonia and nitrite established themselves on and in it, followed deeper inside by the bacteria that are able to deal with nitrate. The canisters had become redundant, though they still run to cause agitation at the seawater surface. The rock dwelling bacteria are clearly dealing with any toxins that are produced.

There’s a large amount that I’ve missed out about the journey from goldfish to a reef as there would be with other marine aquarists who have followed the same or a similar route.

The marine hobby has provided a little insight into the world of the wild reefs. I’ve had the good fortune to snorkel on many reefs in various areas and what a pleasure it was.

As time has progressed I’ve become more and more involved in the whys and wherefores of this and that. Now that experience has accumulated, looking back to the very early days with marines I have to smile and consider it was certainly worthwhile. Learning continues. I’ve found the marine hobby to be educational and it develops the discipline of patience. It’s also entertaining and fun.

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How About An Apple?

Most marine aquarists are only too happy to have something different in their aquariums, as long as that something fits in with the current population.

The apple being talked of here is the Sea Apple which is definitely different! As can be seen it’s colourful too. An aquarist who has one will usually be fascinated by ‘the thing in the corner’. The Sea Apple has been available to aquarists for many years. I feel that the beginner aquarist should let experience build before keeping one, as a pure guess say about a year, or at least until the common general husbandry mistakes are no longer made and seawater quality is consistently high. This is important as will be seen.

‘Sea Apple’ is the common name; the proper one is Pseudocolochirus axiologus. They need the usual correct introduction to the aquarium, that is, acclimatization, and should not be exposed to air. They need to be handled gently but this of course is the same for all livestock.

The Sea Apple does not require reef lighting as it is not a coral but a species of sea cucumber. This can of course be confusing, the common name talks of ‘apple’ yet the species is ‘cucumber’. (This seems to happen from time to time, such as the Foxface fish (Lo vulpinus) that belongs to the rabbitfish family.) The Sea Apple is usually able to grow to about 4″ (circa 10cm) though there are larger species that grow to about 6″ (circa 15.25cm) or more though these are not so readily available and are more expensive.

The Sea Apple is able to move slowly around the aquarium and will do so until it is happy with its position, and this depends a lot on seawater flow. The flow doesn’t need to be very strong but moderate to brisk. This is because from the top centre a crown of feathery tentacles will appear and too strong a flow could cause problems. As said, the Sea Apple will make its choice and the final place could be a viewing glass, a corner, a rock or even the tube from a tubeworm. The aquarist has his or her preference for position, so keep those fingers crossed. The final position is likely to be between half way and the top of the aquarium. Once the Sea Apple has come to rest it should be left in peace unless the position is causing trouble to other livestock or presents a danger to the Sea Apple itself. It should not be irritated by the aquarist; this could be a real problem as will be seen.

The tentacles are used for feeding and are extended into the seawater column for this purpose. Fine particulate matter is captured and, one by one, the tentacles are passed into the mouth for removal of any food and then withdrawn, it’s a bit like a human sucking food off the fingers. This is a fairly slow process and is fascinating to observe.

The Sea Apple is quite hardy in a high quality environment and can live a long time. Many do fail though and this is to do with feeding, or rather the lack of it. In most aquariums there is insufficient suitable fine particulate matter in the seawater and therefore the Sea Apple doesn’t get enough to eat. This causes it to slowly shrink until it dies. Target feeding is needed, the frequency of which is best twice a day or more if the need is observed. There are plenty of commercial fine foods available that are suitable. All that is needed is for this food to be squirted into the seawater with a suitable instrument a little upstream from the Sea Apple when it has the tentacles extended, the food will then drift over them. If the seawater current is too high causing the food to pass too quickly, turning off the pumps for a short period will not do any harm. Any of the fine food that is not taken will drift off and could well be captured by corals.

Overall I would suggest that a reef system is the best aquarium for the Sea Apple to be introduced into. The reason is that there is a greater likelihood that there will not be any fish present that could nip at the tentacles, though this is not always the case. If the Sea Apple is excessively harassed then serious trouble could occur.

The problem that a Sea Apple could cause is very serious. If it is excessively harassed and stressed a toxin could be released that could, and likely will, kill the other livestock. Not a pleasant thought. That is why the Sea Apple should not be harassed excessively by the aquarist and its tank mates should be suitable. In addition it would be a good cautionary measure to protect the intakes of circulation pumps etc so that the Sea Apple cannot be accidentally damaged, this should be done before introduction.

Having said that, the Sea Apple should be a good introduction to a suitable high quality environment provided the aquarist has reasonable experience and feeding is given suitable attention.

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