Just Relax!

The marine hobby is very relaxing most of the time. There could be times when it is stressful for the aquarist, for instance when a fish is in trouble or there is some other serious problem. This stress could also occur when nuisance algae invade and the battle to get rid of it seems to never end. It does eventually end of course, with the aquarist the victor.

As said though, most of the time it is relaxing, a great antidote for those with stressful lives, getting up in the morning, breakfast, travel to work, trains full and/or late, or roads packed and vehicles moving at a snail’s pace. It is even relaxing for those who are already relaxed because they’re retired, for example, and have the time to do the things they actually want to do.

Maintaining the system is a chore sometimes, but for the most part is an enjoyable part of the hobby and also relaxing.

There is nothing more relaxing though than sitting down and just watching the aquarium, seeing healthy, colourful fish and corals in the captive environment the aquarist created.

On this occasion there isn’t any talk of the importance of seawater quality or lighting or anything else. This time let’s just watch.

The attached is a video of a fish only aquarium, with good music. It’s worth a little time. The video music ends quite abruptly, it would have been better to have gently faded out, but at least it’ll wake anyone dozing off!

---

Take A Tour

Coral reefs are fascinating places with a massive diversity of life. These reefs are the foundation of an aquarist’s interest, it is the reefs that supplies most of the livestock, and from which all of it originated.

Some aquarists maintain a mixed reef, probably the most prevalent of aquarium systems. There also those who wish to keep their captive reef so pristine with absolutely perfect corals, or perhaps very difficult to keep corals, that fish have no place in them at all – these are coral only systems. Others keep fish only aquariums with the advantage that fish can be kept which are not reef friendly, such as many butterfly fish which would be likely to make a meal of corals. Yet others keep seahorses that need to be on their own as they cannot compete with fish for available food. Some keep shrimps only, perhaps Mantis that are not welcome in a ‘standard’ system, or groups of cleaner shrimps and similar.

Whatever system is kept the aquarist usually has a general fascination with the wild reefs. Some are very fortunate and visit them, many snorkeling over them with the occasional short dive a few feet down. Others are trained divers using scuba equipment; they can get much deeper and see the reefs in more detail.

Even if not divers ourselves, we can take advantage of some scuba divers skills with photography. Scuba divers visit many reefs in many parts of the world and so there are records available of the varied reefs.

No matter what the aquarist’s interest is there are usually photographs available with fish, big or small, and corals of many types.

Try the link and tour a few of these reefs. There are wreck pictures too though these are not as interesting to aquarists. The link opens the Red Sea page. Click on a photo to enlarge it.

http://www.scubatravel.co.uk/photored.html

---

Just Sometimes…

I’m very fortunate and happy to live in the area I do. It is very green and pleasant and there are plenty of sunny, warm days to enjoy. There is more rain than I’d like occasionally but that is where the greenery comes from. If it was always sunshine it would probably be scrubland or desert and I do like the green and pleasant land.

I’m also very fortunate in that I’ve had the opportunity to explore parts of many reefs in the world. Some of these have been in the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. What wonderful experiences! There could be more of this in the future though recently we’ve been exploring inland areas.

Sometimes I sit and gaze absently at my soft coral reef aquarium, generally appreciating the corals and fish. In these situations I sometimes wander back to the reef visits and recall particular occasions, there were quite a few of them. For example, the time when a small black fish, or sometimes more than one, came right up to my face mask and peered in, seeming to ask ‘Who and what are you?’ At the same time others were having a go at the hairs on my legs. It made me laugh, not something to do underwater when relying on a snorkel for air! Or the time when I cruised along a reef face, got too close and the waves were pushing me on to the corals – they’re sharp, it was a good demonstration of that. Then peering in a hole and being faced by a large conger eel, I backed off gracefully. Or finding myself among some Manta rays, they appeared even bigger than they actually are, and that’s big enough. There’s more but I’ll stop.

I wondered about living in a tropical area near a wild coral reef. I could even feel the warmth of the sun and the coral sand under my feet. There wouldn’t be any need for an aquarium there, whenever the desire appeared just get out the kit and into the sea. Mother Nature’s huge aquarium available whenever, all the time constraints that exist when on holiday gone. What a lot there would be to look at, such huge diversity and beauty. Warm seawater too, and when leaving the sea the warmth of the sun would be available to dry me off as I lay on the beach – with a good long cool drink in hand of course.

We’re allowed to day dream, but the reality is that as said I’m lucky to live where I do, and fortunate to own a successful reef aquarium. I wouldn’t really change it all.

---

Let’s Go Clubbing!

Receiving an invite like that normally means getting into something really comfortable and going to town to study the nightlife, usually through a glass of alcoholic beverage. In this case though it’s a bit more sober – usually – but still a lot of fun.

Aquarists love nothing better than looking at other aquarist’s aquariums, except for looking at their own. Close to that is talk about aquariums in general and all the subjects, such as equipment, that go with it. That’s probably why internet forums are popular, it’s a place where other aquarists give their opinions and experiences and queries can be answered. The answers to queries can in themselves be interesting purely because they are often so different.

There’s another place where face to face contact can be made and that is at an aquarists club. These come under various titles which often include something about the location. In a way they are a live forum.

As said most aquarist love chatting and arguing about the hobby. What better than face to face? Bill tells Fred about the problems Jim had when he introduced that new fish. Good bit of head shaking to be had after that! What about Harry and his alkalinity, he raised it too high you know. General good natured chatter is great and even better if there’s a drink to be had. Most clubs are not private bars; members just take a drink or two to share. Sometimes there are sandwiches and cakes to be had as well.

The greatest potential use of a club, apart from allowing aquarists to make more friends who have interest in the same hobby, is to a novice. Talking directly to more experienced aquarists is going to be of more use than any internet forum, as questions raise questions and the discussion could go on for hours if necessary until the novice understands or has formed an opinion. This kind of discussion usually attracts other aquarists sitting nearby. A ‘what do you think to this’ kind of thing.

Another advantage of a club is the chance to get an invite to view other aquariums. Photographs and videos on the internet are fine, but nothing can replace the view by the human eye. Different equipment in action can be seen, and discussions about methods and improvements could take place.

Many aquarist end up with all sorts of bits and pieces of marine aquarium equipment lying unused in sheds or garages. They appear when upgrades take place, or just changes because the aquarist has decided to follow a different avenue. Aquarists with this dormant equipment would be more than pleased to pass it on, knowing that it is to be put to good use. The cost is very reasonable, in fact if the two making the transaction are club friends it could be free.

We all know the cost of livestock, it isn’t particularly cheap. Also, even if the LFS is of good reputation, there is always the risk of problems. Many aquarists now ‘frag’, a word meaning aquaculture corals. It is quite likely that club members do this, and other club members could benefit before the LFS. An interested aquarist could even be invited to pop round and have a look at the mother colony in advance and see the ‘real thing’. Again, cost is low or it could just be a matter of swapping one for another, with both aquarists benefitting.

Clubs sometimes go off for the day to public aquariums or other places of interest, such as a large but more distant LFS. This offers the opportunity for the aquarists to linger more or less as long as they like. They are also able to chatter about marine subjects, without the children being bored or the partner wanting to go and see some clothes shops.

There are many good things about a local marine club. Maybe it is an overall aquarists club for both marine and freshwater, all the better, more to talk about.

Why not see if there is a local club near you. Try it and see, join if you like it, you probably will.

---

Let’s Cheer Ourselves Up – Again!

There’s always some kind of problem that is going to have dire consequences somewhere in the world. All sorts of things seem to happen around the globe which, taken over seriously, could make anyone despondent.

Of course potential and known problems have to be taken seriously but a lot of this information needs to be filtered if we are to maintain a reasonable level of sanity.

The wild coral reefs are having a hard time of it and deteriorating. Much of this is caused by us, humankind. Some examples are land run-off which includes soil because of de-forestation, chemical pollution because of industry and farm run-off such as nitrates. In addition, in some areas the reefs are still blown up to obtain building materials. More directly connected to the marine hobby, in one or two areas, despite great efforts to change things, cyanide is still used as a catching agent for fish. The cyanide does assist with catching fish and at the same time reduces considerably their likely health and lifespan in a home aquarium. Further, it affects other life that has a home on the reef, killing some of it.

Now I understand there are problems with the Crown of Thorns starfish, Acanthaster placi, on the Great Barrier Reef off Australia. The starfish are quite big, 12 inches and over in diameter. This starfish strips hard corals leaving a white dead skeleton, and the problem was highlighted a good while back when the starfish started to reach very excessive numbers. Attempts then were made to control the starfish by cutting them up, a major mistake as it is a starfish and can regenerate. Perhaps it would have worked if the things had been macerated (anyone for starfish soup?). Eventually I believe individual starfish were taken out of the sea completely and disposed of, which seems a much more practical idea.

Now the starfish are said to be on the increase again and the fear is that the devastation to the reefs will be enormous, so much so that the reefs will lose some of their ability (small as that appears to be) to resist climate change, that is warming of the seas, and the acidification of the seas, that is a reduction in pH. I’m not sure what the temperature increase is up to now in the seas but understand the pH to have fallen by 0.1.

Efforts I’m sure will be made once again to remove the starfish as far as possible. However, once again there is a particular problem caused by us. Well, there would be!

As mentioned earlier, farm run-off is said to be causing excessive algae which means the corals are not able to, or at least are not as efficient at, eating the starfish’s eggs. So it’s a catch 22 situation, the starfish are increasing and eating more corals as the corals are not eating as many of the starfish eggs.

I wonder what life form eats the starfish. I know the corals are supposed to eat many of the eggs, but I mean what naturally predates on the grown starfish? On the reef something eats something which eats something else. What is it? Perhaps assistance could be given to increase this predation.

What about the enormous increase in the jellyfish population?

Or perhaps I shouldn’t ask. Maybe the answer will be another bucket of bad news!

Nature is a great healer given the chance. Maybe the doom will not be as potentially bad as predicted. I like optimism.

Of course there’s another way (which I don’t encourage). As in the saying, ‘Ignorance is bliss’.

(Note: the image is not of a Crown of Thorns)

---

Aquarium Maintenance – Can Laziness Set In?

Over the years I have seen many aquariums – some of which are extremely well cared for and others which have become neglected.

At the start of this hobby many aquarists are filled with eagerness and spend a lot of time learning as much as they can about the hobby, what all the equipment does, why water quality is important etc etc and finally they have their very own marine aquarium all set up.

At the start they are very diligent about the maintenance requirements of the aquarium and carefully perform water tests each week, change the water, empty the skimmer, record all the information etc.

However, over time the aquarium becomes an item which appears like it has always been there, the once diligent testing regime starts to slip and the ‘I’ll do it tomorrow’ starts to set in which then might move on to ‘I’ll do it next week’..

That’s the laziness bit which was mentioned in the title.

Slowly, over time the aquarium starts to deteriorate, algae may start to set in, the sand may start to get dirty, the corals do not extend as much and then the aquarists reaches a turning point. At some point the aquarist notices that the aquarium is not looking as good as it used to and either realises that it needs to be put right and starts to care for the aquarium again or gives up the hobby.

Unfortunately this happens a lot.

It is my opinion that when the decision is made to keep a marine aquarium that the required maintenance is understood up front and that it must be adhered to. After all inside the aquarium is life which have a requirement to be cared for. If you owned a dog would you leave it at home all day, never take it for a walk and never wash it – no I didn’t think so.

I appreciate that there are a lot of people who have busy lives which could be one of the reasons why the aquarium hobby fascinated them in the first place however whilst the aquarium is a joy to observe and is exceptionally relaxing the life in the aquarium has a requirement to be cared for.

Fortunately this is only a small minority of people – the majority of aquarists have a passion for aquatic life and gain enjoyment from looking after the aquarium as well as watching it.

Personally I live quite a hectic life and therefore do not have a set day for looking after the aquarium however I do ensure that the maintenance is performed. I perform the maintennace on an evening after Joshua has gone to bed and the ‘better half’ has settled down to watch television for the evening. I ensure that all the water tests are performed, clean the aquarium, empty and clean the skimmer and do a visual check of the aquarium.

Although I ensure that everything is performed on a weekly basis I do not really have a routine.

My father John on the other hand however is exceptionally diligent at maintaining his aquarium. Every Sunday morning without fail he maitains his aquarium and I also believe he has a set regime for what he does and when.

There are times when I laugh about his regime but when you see his aquarium you can see why it works. As said I have seen many aquariums over the years and although I am probably a bit biased his aquarium is the best I have ever seen.

As already mentioned the majority of aquarists are very good in this area and perform the aquarium maintenance required however there are a few that don’t and my message to these people is – why did you take up this hobby in the first place – it is not fair to the life in the aquarium that they are not looked after.

The bottom line in my opinion is that if the aquarium cannot be maintained in a timely manner or time cannot be devoted to it then perhaps the marine aquarium hobby is not the right hobby to start.

---

Are We Creating A Home Or A Habitat?

At first glance it seems a strange question to be asked. We’re concerned with marine aquariums, so what is meant by ‘home’ and ‘habitat’?

It’s pretty obvious that whether the marine aquarium is a reef or fish only system there’s going to be livestock in it. So we need to create a suitable environment and the first requirement for the completed system is salt water (what a surprise!). Then of course there are the lights, particularly for reef systems, and all the rest. ‘All the rest’ refers to protein skimmers, calcium reactors, heaters etc. These are primarily to maintain high quality seawater.

So what has been created, just a box with some rocks, saltwater and lights? It must be more than that. Many people are quite rightly concerned about the wild reef situation, that is, the ongoing deterioration. This deterioration is a reduction in the quality of the environment; it doesn’t actually alter the habitat. The rocks and sand aren’t disappearing. The aquarium environment is important and that, to me anyway, means the quality mainly of the seawater and also, for a reef system, the lighting.

There is more to it than that of course. Aquarists try to make the aquarium as ‘natural’ as possible, for example using live rock for bio-filtration and also the reef or aquascape construction. Another example is the DSB (deep sand bed).

The aquarium is alien and something like a spaceship with any life inside supported to a large extent by technology. The environment has to be of sufficient quality to permit the life to survive.

The Oxford dictionary explains environment as ‘-.surroundings, surrounding objects, circumstances, or influences.’ So it seems we’re on the correct track so far.

So what of ‘habitat’ then? It could be thought that habitat is the same as environment. However, I would suggest that habitat is more closely related to the life in it. Marine fish normally live on a reef. So the aquarist creates this within the aquarium so that the fish can interact with it the same as they do in the wild as far as possible. When I speak of ‘reef’, this could be the live rock captive reef or the rock construction created in a fish only system. There is a specific habitat for the fish and this is the reef. The same for corals, their habitat is also the reef.

Again, the Oxford dictionary explains ‘habitat’ as ‘natural home of plant or animal.’ Again, it seems we’re still on the correct track.

What of ‘home’ then? We humans have homes to which we return to eat, relax and sleep. We generally feel secure within our home. This can also be applied to fish. As said, the habitat is the reef and within that reef is the home. These homes vary of course; they could be a hide-hole or the stinging tentacles of an anemone. The fish we keep need to feel secure, they need a home, and when the aquarist constructs the reef or aquascape they are not only making the aquarium attractive they are providing the homes the fish require. When the rocks are purchased not only should they be suitable to the aquarist’s artistic requirements, more importantly they should be suitable to the fish’s needs. Each fish, subject to its natural tendencies, needs a crevice or a hole in which to hide and feel secure. It follows that there should be sufficient rocks that are suitable to create sufficient holes and crevices. Without this it is likely that aggression could appear, as one fish could attempt to take over the home of another. The need to hide overnight for example is very strong; failure to hide could mean death. Fish instincts don’t change in the aquarium.

The Oxford dictionary supports ‘home’ by advising ‘…dwelling place; one’s residence…’.

So I would suggest that the aquarist is creating a habitat to simulate, as far as possible, the wild reef, and within that habitat will be created homes for the life that dwells on the captive reef. If that life feels secure and unstressed all should be well. The aquarist just needs to maintain a high quality environment.

---

Next Page »