A Large Aquarium Re-Start
September 18, 2009
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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The Marine Betta
September 2, 2009
There are so many fish that are attractive and tempt the aquarist, from small to moderate to large in size. Some are aggressive, some sensitive but are they suitable for the aquarium? The answer of course is mainly ‘yes’, with the addition that they all need to have their preferred environment provided.
One fish that is not as brightly coloured as some others, but is colourful and very attractive nevertheless, is the marine betta, as can be seen at the following link. Another common name for the fish is marine comet. The proper name is Calloplesiops altivelis.
http://www.ozanimals.com/Fish/Comet/Calloplesiops/altivelis.html
The beta is covered in dots and has large finnage which is where the common names probably come from. When the fins are extended they look spectacular. These fish are capable of growing to around 6¼” (circa 16cm) so they are not for the small aquarium, if they are to be comfortably housed a 36″ (circa 91.5cm) aquarium or thereabouts is recommended. Normally only one beta should be kept. Their tank mates should be selected carefully as they are fairly shy and not at their best when housed with bold, high action and/or aggressive fish, the companions should be of a similar size or smaller. It is also best not to overcrowd the fish, which is good practice in any aquarium anyway – a lower fish population is advantageous.
Having said companions should be smaller, care is again needed as the beta could predate on much smaller fish. It tends to ambush them from whatever area it has decided to hide in. Care also needs to be taken with smaller crustaceans as these will sometimes be eaten.
Once the fish has settled in feeding is not normally a problem, good quality frozen food is usually accepted and often so is freeze dried food. There will no doubt always be exceptions, but flake food is not particularly attractive to them. The aquarist needs to observe the fish in the aquarium at feeding time, as is the practice anyway, as the beta could lose out to faster and greedier fish it is necessary to ensure it has fed sufficiently.
For the fish to settle well the aquarium must be furnished with rockwork, be this live rock or otherwise. The rockwork needs to be arranged so that there are one or two caves, preferably several, that are large enough for the fish to hide in and watch the outside world from.
A very bright halide lit reef aquarium is not ideal for the beta as it prefers moderate light – a reef that houses soft corals and is lit by fluorescents would be better, as would the lesser lit fish only system. The fish could become accustomed more or less to brighter light but in this circumstance is likely to hide away for longer periods. The natural habit of the fish is to hide away during the day, but in the lower lit aquarium the fish should be seen more often for longer periods.
When the fish is first introduced to the aquarium it is likely to hideaway for quite a period, most fish hideaway at first but the beta’s period could be longer. The fish should start to appear when ‘dusk’ occurs (that is, main lights off and actinics only on before lights out) or maybe it could be ‘dawn’. Whatever, it should settle provided it feels secure and the environment is of high quality and then be seen more.
The only defence the fish has (to my knowledge) is that when it feels threatened it will put its head into the rocks and leave only the tail and rear body showing. The markings on the rear end seem to be similar to a moray eel, and any potential aggressor will consider twice before mixing with those.
This lovely and interesting fish will be excellent for the aquarium provided its tank mates are suitable, the lighting isn’t too bright, there are suitable hiding places and the seawater is of high quality. The aquarist could need to search a little before a fish is located.
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Ouch! Know Your Enemy
August 25, 2009
Last week I was helping my neighbour move a broken up concrete garage base to make way for a new one. Because the lumps of concrete were pretty rough I wore protective gloves.
Without warning a pain similar I suppose to having a red hot needle stuck into me occurred on the inner wrist. The pain didn’t last long, about a second, so it wasn’t severe. The only word I uttered was ‘Ouch!’ I saw the wasp leave, somehow or other it had got caught between my wrist and the glove. Over a couple of days my wrist did swell to an extent, but there wasn’t a problem though the itching was an annoyance.
When it happened I tried to recall the standard remedy. I knew that a wasp and bee had opposite sting make-up, one being alkaline and the other acid. Should I dose the sting spot with milk or vinegar? I wasn’t sure so I did both.
Later I found that a bee sting is acid, so milk would be appropriate, and a wasp sting is alkaline, so vinegar would be appropriate. Pretty straightforward really and seldom a real problem unless the person involved is likely to severely adversely react and/or is stung many times.
Australians often take a bottle of vinegar to the beach in case of stings. There are some nasty life forms that could make their presence felt. Another way if vinegar isn’t present is to use urine so I’m told (so perhaps those few beers on the beach could help in more ways than one!).
Vinegar, milk and urine are not the correct medications for all venomous stings and bites etc.
Marine aquariums are to be found in many places around the world. In the US and EU they are very numerous. Considering livestock, there’s a few that could cause problems.
In the sea there are some dangerous creatures and some of these find their way into aquariums. For example the blue ringed octopus is kept by a few aquarists. This little octopus, properly called Hapalochlaena maculosa, is around the size of a golf ball and is attractive, though the rings only turn blue when it is about to attack or as a warning to another life form considered too close. The size makes it a possibility for inclusion in a suitable aquarium. However, it has a deadly bite because it injects toxin.
Another dangerous creature is the stonefish (one type is Synaneichthyes verrucosus). I have seen a stonefish for sale, though only once, but why anyone would want to keep one I don’t know. The fish is sedentary, sitting still waiting for prey. They look very like a rock. On the back of the fish are 13 grooved spines which inject toxin if they penetrate the skin, somewhat like hypodermic needles. The intensity of pain and subsequent problems is subject to an extent on the number of spines that penetrated the skin. The pain is stated to be excruciating.
A problem caused by a blue ringed octopus or a stonefish needs immediate medical attention or death could occur. There are other dangerous creatures in addition to the two mentioned.
Most of us marine aquarists don’t keep such life forms. There are a similar few that are kept but are not as dangerous perhaps, but dangerous nonetheless.
One such fish, and well known, is the common lionfish, properly called Pterois volitans. There are other types but the common lionfish is the most readily available. The body markings are quite striking and the finnage beautiful. In the aquarium they need careful selection of companions or the companions could be eaten! The fins are the problem to the aquarist; they are able to inject venom that causes great pain.
Another well known and commonly kept fish is the foxface, properly called Lo vulpinus. These fish are also colourful and are a ‘different’ addition to the aquarium because of their head shape, though why they should be called foxface I don’t know. The danger with these fish again lies with the venomous fin spines which are capable of injecting venom which could take a long time to heal.
Another commonly kept life form is not a fish this time, but a coral. It’s very innocuous looking and kept in very many aquariums from beginner to advanced. It is quite tolerant and is usually able to resist some errors made by beginning aquarists. They are the zoanthids or button polyps which come in various polyp sizes and colours, normally covering the upper surfaces of a rock. Who would think there could be any danger from these? The danger comes from the species Palythoa, Protopalythoa and related species. Many aquarists handle zoanthids without any problem – in fact, problems from handling are rare. The fact is that the mucus of these zoanthids contains a neurotoxin which could be very dangerous or deadly to the aquarist. It is known that some tribes used to dip their spears in the mucus for use in battle and hunting*. So when one of these polyp groups is to be handled at the very least the aquarist should be sure there aren’t any cuts and abrasions on the skin. Wearing suitable gloves would be better.
The aquarium inhabitants mentioned above aren’t the only potential dangers that could appear. What is necessary is that the aquarist knows the potential problem(s) that could be introduced with newly purchased livestock to ensure he or she is happy with the situation. More important the knowledge should ensure the aquarist takes precautions and exercises caution when carrying out maintenance etc. The knowledge about livestock comes from some simple pre-purchase research.
In addition it is necessary, like a good scout, to be prepared. So as the potential problem is known the aquarist can find out from the internet or other sources what course of action should be taken should a mishap occur. Obviously medical assistance could be required, but it is important to be able to take initial action, if any, to help control the problem before medical help is available. It is also important to be able to advise the medics what it is that has happened, for example a puncture from X fish that is known to carry venom. At the extreme it could save your life.
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Firefish
August 1, 2009
These little fish are really worthwhile owning for both interest and beauty. They are usually easy to obtain and don’t cost a king’s ransom.
Firefish are also commonly called fire gobies. The proper name for them is Nemateleotris xxxx. The reason I have shown the second part as x’s is because there is more than one type (this method is not common practice!). Probably the best known is Nemateleotris magnifica. The link shows photos of this fish:
http://fins.actwin.com/species/index.php?t=9&i=119
As said there is more than one type in this group, two more lovely types are Nemateleotris decora and Nemateleotris helfrichi.
The fish could grow to around 3 1/8 inches (circa 8cm). They stand out not only because of beauty but because they have a very long dorsal fin, or the front part of it anyway. They are a peaceful fish which should not cause difficulties with others or with reef livestock such as corals.
The downside with these fish is that they shouldn’t be kept with larger more boisterous and/or belligerent types. This means that a fish only system is usually unsuitable. If they are kept in such a way they are likely to be always nervous and not show their true colours properly. A nervous and stressed fish is more likely to succumb to disease or just fade away.
The best place for firefish to be housed is in a reef system. The fish need a cave that is deep inside the reef for security, which they can dive into if danger seems near. This is the problem with incorrect tank mates; the firefish could be mostly afraid to leave their cave and even if they do it will not be for any distance. In the reef system they should be kept with small quiet non-aggressive fish. As said there isn’t any danger to corals.
Stocking is straightforward with simple guidelines. The firefish should be one of the first fish into the aquarium so that it can settle before other fish arrive. They will select a cave deep in the reef and gain confidence. One firefish could be introduced, but in the wild they tend to live in pairs* so two could be introduced at the same time. More than two pairs could be introduced provided the aquarium is large (the minimum suggested size for a pair is 30 inches (circa 76cm). This way the flicking of the dorsal fin will probably be seen, this is thought to be a signaling device. It might be thought that the higher seawater circulation in a reef system would be a problem for the fish, but usually it isn’t, the recommended flow is medium to strong. Though it doesn’t usually cause a serious problem, strong lighting is not particularly liked; the preference of the firefish is for moderate intensity. However, if the firefish is unhappy it could select an area where the lighting is not so strong, these usually are present in most reef systems.
Feeding is not a problem normally. In nature the fish take food from the seawater column, mainly plankton. Of course this is not possible in an aquarium situation. However, if suitably sized food is floating in the current the fish will normally go for it. Marine flake, brine and mysis shrimp are suitable, plus any other foods that are similar. If live foods are available such as brine shrimp these will usually also be taken.
When the aquarist first introduces the firefish to the aquarium they are likely to dive into the rocks and disappear. However, after a time, maybe a day or so, they should re-appear and start to hover in the seawater column. At this early stage they will probably dive back into the rocks when the aquarist approaches. However, as time continues this should reduce and the fish could even commence to ‘beg’ for food as do many other species. The normal daytime practice is for the firefish to hang in the seawater column above the home cave location waiting for food to pass by.
The firefish is reported to be a ’jumper’, that is, it has been known to jump out of the aquarium. Why this should be is not certain, maybe more boisterous fish spooked them. When I kept firefish they never jumped at all – their companions were peaceable and small so perhaps that was the reason.
In a suitable environment firefish should not present any problems. They are usually easy to feed and provide, in addition to their beauty, a slightly different looking fish.
(*Reference: Marine Atlas. Helmut Debelius & Hans A. Baensch)
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Can You Imagine Them Yesterday? – Yesterday They Couldn’t Imagine Us
July 27, 2009
Wild coral reefs don’t think (if they could) in terms of ‘yesterday’ as we understand it. Yesterday could be a thousand years ago or more. This is the wild reef overall of course, not the multitudes of organisms that make it up. The ‘yesterdays’ in that case could be as ours.
We marine aquarists tend to think in terms of days, weeks and months. We wait for the bio-filter to ‘mature’. We watch as the captive reef settles and marvel at the incredible sights that Mother Nature created and we obtained. Slowly (in our terms) the captive reef changes and develops.
‘Yesterday’ is a direct literal word and also a suggestive one. Paul McCartney of the Beatles sang ‘Yesterday all my troubles seemed so far away’ and this could have been a literal yesterday or months or even years ago. In this case we’re talking of years, quite a few in fact, forty plus and more.
Marine aquarists then were a different bunch; they were generally patient and careful and had to be. The modern aquarist is but not in the same way. The grounding for this care and patience in bygone days was lack of knowledge.
The internet wasn’t even a possibility or an item of science fiction. Marine aquarium books, there weren’t any. It was word of mouth and hope. The hobby itself didn’t really exist, as to be a hobby as such needs a largish following. The early marine aquarists were really dedicated hopers, stumbling along from problem to problem. It was believed that clean salt water was the answer and as soon as any problem reared its ugly head seawater changes commenced, often to no avail. The seawater itself wasn’t as we know it, it was a very basic mixture of ingredients obtained from chemists and home mixed. All that were kept were a few fish and perhaps an invertebrate or two. Nothing seemed to last long, something clearly was wrong.
Then a Mr. Straughan (an Englishman I believe) came along. He also was concerned about seawater cleanliness and spent some time considering how this could be achieved without changing seawater quite so much. He recognized that there existed one item in the aquarium that would make a very good solids filter – the sand. Most aquariums of the time had coarse sand on the base. What he did was pump seawater down into the sand under a plate so that it flowed up again through the sand. The debris became trapped and the seawater was noticeably cleaner. The amount of seawater changing reduced.
The fish lived longer and Mr. Straughan was sure that the increased cleanliness was the answer. In a way he was correct, the seawater was cleaner but not only from debris – also from the toxics ammonia and nitrite. Bacteria had developed within the sand and were fed with oxygen laden seawater. Mr. Straughan as I understand it was never sure about the toxin reasoning but this was the case – he had created an under-gravel bio-filter. Who suggested the presence of bacteria I do not know, but it was correct of course.
It wasn’t long before the marine hobby started to grow now that such a barrier had been overcome. This was apparent because commercial under-gravel filters appeared so there had to be a market. Pet shops started to keep some colourful marine fish, often damsels, which really advertised themselves. Numbers of fresh water aquarists moved to the marine side.
It was at this point that I became involved, being one of those fresh water aquarists. I saw some damsels and.. well, the seed was sown.
The very earliest marine aquariums were glass held in place by angle iron (just think of the problems with salt water). Attempts were made to combat this with stainless steel. However, my aquariums were glass and silicone sealant thank goodness!
Those aquariums were successful for the most part, but fish only. Keep corals, don’t be silly, impossible! We should have known, it had been said earlier that keeping coral fish was impossible, at least for any length of time.
My fish only aquarium was decorated with a sand base (with an under-gravel filter) and dead bleached corals. How awful that sounds now. We used to put the dead coral skeletons in fresh water, perhaps with bleach in, to kill and remove any living or once living material so reducing the chance of pollution. After careful rinsing, into the aquarium it went. I thought it was so wonderful having these colourful fish and they seemed happy and healthy enough. Thank goodness I never suffered from the dreaded wipe-out when all fish died. This wasn’t from ammonia, nitrite or disease (though disease did claim a lot of fish) but something was obviously doing it – all fish wiped out in up to a week or so. It still isn’t known for sure what caused it at least to me; some argued it was algae causing toxicity (how?).
One day something magic happened – a protein skimmer came on the market. It was air driven and the bubbles travelled in the same direction as the flow of seawater, so contact time wasn’t brilliant. It worked though and the tank wipe-out became a thing of the past. So it seems dissolved organic matter could have had something to do with the wipe-out? Perhaps so.
Improvements continued in small ways, such as the under-gravel filter had its seawater flow reversed. In other words, instead of seawater being pumped down under the sand and then up through it, the seawater travelled down through the sand and then came up tubes. This lowered the under-gravel’s major problem which was the accumulation of detritus which could seriously reduce effectiveness because of less seawater flow, but it didn’t cure it.
Things moved on and gathered pace – as the marine hobby grew in popularity so more and more manufacturers recognized the potential market. Manufacturers are of course in competition so products became better. An example of this was (and is) the canister filter which had been in use in the freshwater world for many a year. This moved to marines and many bio-medias appeared, one of the best being sintered glass (this is the bio method I used, and still used until recently).
So here we are today. The hobby is at a point that would have made aquarists such as Mr. Straughan gasp in amazement. The fish we keep are so varied. Then the corals, what can be said? With a combination of both the captive reef is born.
In comparison to those early days we have a much easier life, even compared to when I began with marines. This is based on knowledge not necessarily in the grasp of aquarists but with manufacturers who are able to produce so much advanced equipment to maintain seawater quality. Lighting too, there are many choices of bulb or fluorescent tube tailored for corals, whose light requirements in those early days were unknown. Protein skimmers are mainly no longer air driven but use electricity, with seawater flowing through clouds of tiny bubbles achieving a high contact time. Then all the rest of the equipment available such as calcium reactors, aquarists don’t even have to top up the seawater if they don’t want to, they can use automation. Tap water isn’t good enough; we can super filter it with a reverse osmosis unit!
So when that beautiful captive reef is watched what a foundation it is built on. We have a great deal to thank those early pioneer aquarists for. The stress we modern aquarists feel from time to time really shrinks in comparison to the efforts, stress and frustration that must have existed then.
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The Foxface
July 14, 2009
The title ‘Foxface’ does belong to a marine fish, one that is fairly commonly kept though I suspect not a top favourite. Why it should be called a foxface I don’t really understand, or maybe it’s just me! I think at best it could be called ‘badgerface’, though the flow of the name isn’t so good.
Anyway it’s a rabbitfish (hey, there we go again!) and the proper name is Siganus vulpinus. Actually it’s the overall family of these fishes that are termed ‘rabbitfish’, why I have no idea. I can’t see the basis for that name either. (A surgeonfish has blades – ‘scalpels’ – near the tail so that makes sense.) I’ll stop nattering.
The fish is usually purchased from the retailers at quite a modest size, say 3 or 4 inches, and is suitable at this point for a fairly small aquarium of 3 feet +. The fish is capable of growing to about 9½ inches (circa 24.25cm) though usually less in captivity, so an initial aquarium size of 4 feet + would be better.
It needs to be noted that the foxface has venomous spines on the dorsal and anal fins. It’s necessary to ensure that the hand or arm does not come into contact with them during maintenance operations. The one I kept seemed to be particularly inquisitive when I needed to put a hand in the aquarium trying to come really close, so my wife kindly used a clean stick to gently keep it at a distance, which did the trick. No mishaps (that is me jumping about holding an arm!) ever occurred. Better safe than sorry.
The foxface is likely to be aggressive towards one of its own kind so it is best kept singularly. They are suitable for a fish only or reef system. As with most fish it needs a secure hole to hide in – having said that the one that I had would jam itself behind the same filter every night, keeping itself in position by curling its body. At first I was very concerned as the colours faded very markedly at night, however I learned that this is a normal situation and the fish was always out in the morning back to normal colouration.
The foxface is easy to feed as they will accept just about anything that is on offer, which usually includes flake, de-frozen brine and mysis shrimp etc. This is fine but it is important to offer food containing algae as well, such as ‘spirulina enriched’ types. In addition, blanched lettuce fixed to a clip is usually accepted. However, it’s always best to offer algae – the fish is likely to take algae available in the aquarium but this is more than likely going to be insufficient. Sheets of algae such as Nori can be purchased and these can be fixed to a lettuce clip and left for the fish to browse on. If there are surgeonfish in the aquarium as well they will also take it. The aquarist will soon learn from experience how much to put in.
In the aquarium the foxface offers colour and a different shape, to an extent anyway, behind the head it is a lovely yellow colour in total, with a long black-topped snout, underneath is a length of white, then black again. Here’s the fish:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Siganus_vulpinus_2.jpg
Now, why is it called a foxface in a family of rabbitfish…?
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The Regal Tang
July 9, 2009
This fish in addition to the regal tang is also known as the blue surgeonfish, but is properly called Paracanthurus hepatus.
The fish must be known to just about every marine aquarist. It is a beautiful blue with a yellow tail, with darker shading along the edge of the dorsal fin and along the back. It is often seen in retailer’s shops at a small size and the blue is wonderful – a small shoal of them is something else. I read somewhere once that the fish is the ‘bluest thing on earth’. How true this is could be questionable but it gives the correct impression. The wondrous blue does fade however as the fish gets larger.
The link shows a photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9184647@N02/2206772757/sizes/l/
Talking of size it is possible for the fish to grow to around 11¾ inches (circa 30cm) though it is not so likely to reach this size in a home aquarium.
Seawater quality needs to be high which is normal for all systems.
As with all surgeons it is necessary that the fish has plenty of space to swim, therefore it is not suited to a small aquarium. They could be purchased at a small size but as can be seen they grow. They are usually acceptable for a reef system but the reef must not be so large as to over-reduce the available swimming space.
The fish when swimming seems rather inefficient compared to most others, and sometimes seems to be trying not to float to the surface. This is normal and it can move if the necessity arises!
Unfortunately, the fish is reported as being very susceptible to ‘white spot’ and ‘velvet’. I don’t dispute this at all though when I kept one for a good many years I didn’t encounter any such problems. However, Peter had a problem with ‘white spot’ a good while ago and sadly lost some fish before he cured it. One of the survivors was the regal tang!
As said I used to have a regal tang. When I cleaned the aquarium viewing glass with an algae magnet the tang would slowly approach the moving magnet and follow it up and down. Slowly the colour of the fish changed the blue getting more and more pale until it suggested white. It would continue to follow the magnet up and down with fins erect in a very obvious threat posture. The fish was truly pale with rage! The plastic of the magnet was blue so it was presumably seen as an interloper. Among its tank mates, including other blue fish, the regal tang was peaceable though. Maybe it took exception to a square fish!
In the aquarium they are generally peaceful and good eaters. The will take flake and the usual frozen foods such as brine and mysis shrimp. It is essential though that a supply of algae is provided to keep them in good health and colour. If there is insufficient in the aquarium, which is likely, then the aquarist must provide a regular amount of Nori or similar which can be obtained from pet shops and also health food shops (humans eat it with toast apparently!). The fish will also eat blanched lettuce with gusto, though this is not as good as algae.
If the fish is selected carefully in the first place, the home aquarium is big enough and a suitable diet is provided, the regal tang is a good addition to the display.
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