Mr. Fosi Posted October 20, 2007 Author Share Posted October 20, 2007 Linux instead. So I noticed my clownfish is MIA. I've been all over the tank, filters, and surrounding carpet and no fish. I noticed this a couple days ago so I have been keeping an eye on the tank in case she is hiding; I even tried feeding to lure her out. I wonder if she jumped into a filter and got chewed up or suddenly died for no apparent reason and got cleaned up by the CUC... That's a real bummer 'cause I really liked that fish. Link to comment
bluebastion Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 I've got another one for you. Had to separate my pseudo, but hopeful, pair. They just weren't getting along. I'm waiting for the one in my tank to become female and larger before I try again. You're more than welcome to the one I've placed in the wife's sea horse tank. Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 20, 2007 Author Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hey, if you have a fish burning a hole in your tank, I'd be more than happy to take it off your hands. Link to comment
ClowningAround Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 So I noticed my clownfish is MIA. Sorry to hear that Mr.fosi Link to comment
bluebastion Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Working at the LFS for credit has its many benefits... like free dinner. Link to comment
c est ma Posted October 20, 2007 Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hi there, Mr. F! So I'm looking at the home page of N-R and notice a tank thread by Mr. Fosi. "Oh, good!," I think. So I click on it and it's 14pp long. "Oh, crap," I think... So, an hour or so later... What a saga! Believe me, we all have our ups and downs and we can all identify! Your tank went together beautifully and I'm sure it's still showing lots of promise. Still, like you I hate to lose anything, and I too baby along whatever little wayward, shriveled looking polyp I find in some nearly inaccessible cranny...so I really like the way you preserved as much as you could from your previous tanks and what ever later setbacks they endured. Do you have an update on the Madracis? I feel especially connected to that specimen! BTW, for some reason, in your later posts with lots of pics, I could only see maybe the first half of them--the rest appeared as urls only... Speaking of pics, do you have an update on this one?: What a doll! Mine looked like that yesterday. (Today they're 16 & 22...) Also in the OT vein--mind giving a short synopsis (if possible) of what your research proposal (I gather this is the same thing as your thesis topic) turned out to be? All the best, --Diane Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 20, 2007 Author Share Posted October 20, 2007 Hey Diane! Glad to have you in my thread. I can't believe you read the whole thing! By request (and because they are long overdue): PICTURES! First: the Madracis. Don't be alarmed by the white tinge to upper-right colony. That colony has been in a high-flow location for the last three months. It is still growing like gangbusters, but the polyps are smaller in diameter and it keeps the tentacles more retracted. Note the lower-left colony is still a brown color. This is a slightly different view. You can see that the lighter colony has spread out quite a bit. I tried to get a good pic of the darker colony because it has longer, white-tipped tentacles but the angle makes it blurry. Here is my flesh-receding purple chalice. You can also see the moss-like algae I mentioned before. If I pull it (the algae) off, it peels cleanly away from the rock and has a very mossy texture/firmness. And here are two FTSs. Yes, my magfloats are in the pic. And here are the updated baby pics. He is hardly a baby anymore since he will be 13 months on the 23rd. He is walking everywhere. Here he is dragging around his favorite toy: a metal cooking spoon. Here you can see him giving the kittah some love. It's a good thing we have trained this cat to endure abuse with a smile. BTW, for some reason, in your later posts with lots of pics, I could only see maybe the first half of them--the rest appeared as urls only... I think this is due to the recent forum software updates, but I can't be sure. I don't know if I can fix it without re-posting the pics out of order. Also in the OT vein--mind giving a short synopsis (if possible) of what your research proposal (I gather this is the same thing as your thesis topic) turned out to be? I've posted the abstract below. NERRS = National Estuarine Research Reserve System. ABSTRACTRecent exponential human population growth and urbanization in the coastal zone of South Carolina has negatively impacted estuarine water and habitat quality. Though many studies have documented the effects of urbanization upon macrobiota, such effects have remained largely uninvestigated in ecologically important microbial communities. The goal of the proposed studies is to compare the biomass, community composition, spatial distribution and primary productivity of estuarine benthic microalgal communities in representative urbanized and non-urbanized habitats. These comparisons will be made using photopigment analysis via HPLC (biomass and community composition), in situ spectroscopy (biomass and spatial distribution), and oxygen microelectrodes (primary productivity). The proposed project will address national NERRS priorities by documenting “effects of non-point source pollution” and local priorities investigating "impacts of coastal development on ecological communities" and “habitat alteration and loss of biodiversity”. The development of the proposed spectroscopic method for estimating benthic microalgal biomass is germane to researchers focusing on coastal systems. The method is inexpensive, rapid, non-destructive and can easily be incorporated into current NERRS biological sampling programs. The data to be collected for the proposed study will be relevant not only to estuarine researchers, but will provide insights into the partitioning of production between water-column and benthic photoautotrophs within urban systems. This study will probably only be good for 1 chapter of my dissertation and I will likely need 3-4 chapters for my committee to declare that I have done enough work to earn a PhD. Link to comment
c est ma Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Wow! Ask and ye shall receive! Such a wealth of info that I think I'll break my responses up into separate posts...if I can wait long enough so that N-R doesn't fuse them for me... Going in order...I'm so glad to see the Madracis hanging in there--well, actually recovering nicely, for that matter. But it looks as if you've inadvertantly set up an interesting experiment! What a striking difference in appearance between colonies! You're sure it's mostly a matter of flow? The more vertical colony isn't also somewhat more shaded? BTW--do you ever feed this coral? (Forgive me if I've already read and forgotten this!) Very cool hitcher! What the heck's going on with the chalice? I would not have expected it to take so long if the event of last July had fatally harmed it! Is the fleshy part eating? FTS's look super! Hope your AWOL clown reappeared... (FWIW, I never notice the mag floats. ) More later. --D Link to comment
c est ma Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 Well, it turns out, if you have a teenager and only one internet-enabled computer in the house, you don't always have to look for an artificial delay... Speaking of kids...awwwwwwwwwwwwww! WHAT a cutie! Amazing how much the pic with the spoon looks like the one from January. And I can't believe that cat! He/she caught my eye in an earlier pic--beautiful cat--but I've never known one to suffer toddlers gladly. Or at all... That you hiding behind the kiddo in the first pic? My friend used to say this was the most dangerous stage--the stage between "when they start to walk and when they get half a brain in their heads..." This study will probably only be good for 1 chapter of my dissertation and I will likely need 3-4 chapters for my committee to declare that I have done enough work to earn a PhD. LOL! Just before I read that I'd been going to comment on what a chunk of work you'd carved out for yourself! Sounds like great grant-bait, though. Is it going well? Funny--my husband got his Masters at a marine station (Oregon Inst. of Marine Biol.) working on estaurine worm respiratory pigments...seems like even an HPLC was involved, but I could be thinking of the doctorate... At any rate (dons fogey hat), long hours and penury notwithstanding, I predict you'll look back at these years as some of the happiest of your life. Esp. with that little rug rat around! --Diane Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 You're sure it's mostly a matter of flow? The more vertical colony isn't also somewhat more shaded? BTW--do you ever feed this coral? I am and I do. That colony didn't start to stay retracted until I added that powerhead three months ago. The lighting hasn't changed in that time. I have read in a couple places that pencil coral (the common name for several Madracis species) is hard to ID without dead skeleton because it has such radically different growth forms under different flow conditions. When it get's intentionally fed it is usually with mysis. What the heck's going on with the chalice? I would not have expected it to take so long if the event of last July had fatally harmed it! Is the fleshy part eating?\ I wouldn't have thought so either, but it just keeps meandering downhill. I got this and another chalice from ebin a long while ago. The other chalice didn't make it a month and suffered the same fate as this one seems to be. The fleshy part will not eat and it hasn't been extending its tentacles either. The clown is still MIA and presumed dead. It is hard to believe that a fish can just disappear, but with that much rock and detritovores I suppose it is possible. I just wish I knew for sure what happened. Amazing how much the pic with the spoon looks like the one from January. That's why I picked that one. It's the eyes... they haven't changed. ... I've never known [a cat] to suffer toddlers gladly. Or at all... Well, this one came from my parents barn, likely a product of two black cats. He has always been good natured and I have pounded into his little cat head that it is the humans who run the house. So he must That you hiding behind the kiddo in the first pic? It is. I hate how I look in our camera's flash. LOL! Just before I read that I'd been going to comment on what a chunk of work you'd carved out for yourself! Sounds like great grant-bait, though. Is it going well? I guess we'll see. My adviser and I submitted a different version to a granting agency earlier this year and it was declined. Not due to the reviewers of course. I have almost completely re-vamped it over the last two months and will be using it to apply for a fellowship at the end of next week. At any rate (dons fogey hat), long hours and penury notwithstanding, I predict you'll look back at these years as some of the happiest of your life. You know, that's what everyone said about my undergrad years. I always have another goal or another dream to pursue so I wonder if I will ever spend much time looking backward. Link to comment
c est ma Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 I have read in a couple places that pencil coral (the common name for several Madracis species) is hard to ID without dead skeleton because it has such radically different growth forms under different flow conditions. Interesting! The clown is still MIA and presumed dead. It is hard to believe that a fish can just disappear, but with that much rock and detritovores I suppose it is possible. I just wish I knew for sure what happened. Sorry. Better get another fish, eh? I doubt if your baby will notice coral, yet. Well, this one came from my parents barn, likely a product of two black cats. No kidding?! With that color pattern he looks like some fancy-schmancy breed. He has always been good natured and I have pounded into his little cat head that it is the humans who run the house. So he must If I send you my cats will you train them, please? (In your spare time. ) I guess we'll see. My adviser and I submitted a different version to a granting agency earlier this year and it was declined. Not due to the reviewers of course. I have almost completely re-vamped it over the last two months and will be using it to apply for a fellowship at the end of next week. Ah, yes. It's easy to forget that side of grad school... You know, that's what everyone said about my undergrad years. I always have another goal or another dream to pursue so I wonder if I will ever spend much time looking backward. Well, it'd be nice to still be in touch in, say, 3 decades or so, and see what your perspective is then. [insert existential emoticon.] But that's a super outlook to have. --D Link to comment
beeman7467 Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 This is a great thread. I am intrigued by your homemade PVC surface skimmer. I know you can purchase one to fit the Aquaclear at most fish stores, but it looks like a PITA to keep it adjusted, so I've never purchased (i.e. don't want to waste the 15 dollars) one. Does it work?? How far below the surface is it set?? Since it is fixed (not adjustable) I gotta believe there's little or no maintenance. Thanks!! Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 Better get another fish, eh? I doubt if your baby will notice coral, yet. Bluebastion has picked up that end. He bought a couple percs and one turned into a bully. Now it is hiding in the rockwork of my tank. If I send you my cats will you train them, please? (In your spare time. ) I'll have to get back to you on that. This is a great thread. I am intrigued by your homemade PVC surface skimmer... Does it work?? How far below the surface is it set?? Since it is fixed (not adjustable) I gotta believe there's little or no maintenance. Thank you for the complement. The surface skimmer works really well. It is currently set about 1-1.5 cm below the water but it works much better when the prongs are out of the water or just a couple mm under it. It is not fixed since i didn't glue any of the joints. I left it unglued so I could take it apart if I ever needed to clean it (which I haven't yet). Leaving it unglued also leaves it adjustable since you can swap in different lengths of pipe between the skimmer and the first elbow. Now for some more pics. Those of you who have read this thread know that it is the generosity of bluebastion that made this tank possible. He bought me a tank to replace the one I cracked and he did so without allowing me to pay him back. He has given me frags, mangroves and eggcrate and he still won't let me give him any money. Now he has passed along a Euphyllia colony (that he called a "frag") and a percula clown. Here are some pics of the new additions as they were being floated earlier today. And here is a two-pic time series. The first pic is ~1 min after having been introduced to the tank and the second pic is after ~1 hr. You can see that its extension is already quite good. I expect it to fill out this corner of the tank very well. Maybe if I am lucky, it will sting the two nearby vermitid snails to death. Thanks again blue! Also, I decided to move the chalice to a lower light, lower flow location and I am going to try feeding it again tonight. Link to comment
coolwaters Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 hey i think thats the exact same frogspawn i have. but my heads are bigger =X what kind of lighting r u using? Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 130W PC 1x6700K and 1xdual actinic. I have a 50/50 lamp laying laying around but I like the more "natural" look that this combo imparts. Link to comment
HeyLookItsCaps Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 so this is the MR. Fosi Donation Station? whats your address? <.< >.> Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 21, 2007 Author Share Posted October 21, 2007 Well, I don't give out my address but my phone number is: 1.800.no.shame Link to comment
HeyLookItsCaps Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 i was gonna send you a frag or 2 Link to comment
bluebastion Posted October 21, 2007 Share Posted October 21, 2007 The frag looks good Fosi. The perc has the same empty stare though... he should have known better than to mess with the little guy. Even though I knew they would only be in the box for 3 hours or so total, when I opened the door to the front door this morning, it felt like it was 50 degrees.. that would explain the heat pack in the box. Enjoy. Link to comment
divecj5 Posted October 22, 2007 Share Posted October 22, 2007 Tank is looking great Mr. Fosi and congrats on the Euphyllia frag and the new clown. They both look incredibly healthy and I hope they are doing perfect in the tank. Your grant/research proposal sounds great. Graduating with a degree in Marine Science (coastal zone management) from Carolina and having had worked in the School of Public Health for three years, I have a lot of interest in estuarine research. I helped a number of grad students while doing my undergrad....lots of trompsing through the salt marshes of South Carolina Nothing beats that smell. Now I work with NOAA dealing with all sorts of interesting projects and we have some pretty close dealings with a number NEERS. Best of luck with the research and the next time I'm up in Cola. we'll have to meet up or something. It's nice to meet some fellow Carolina reefers on here. Link to comment
travisurfer Posted October 22, 2007 Share Posted October 22, 2007 awesome to see things going well fosi. btw, i was finally able to get a free frag or two of xenia along the way. Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 23, 2007 Author Share Posted October 23, 2007 That's good, but I still owe you something. The xenia finally croaked after I changed lighting. Link to comment
bluebastion Posted October 23, 2007 Share Posted October 23, 2007 That's good, but I still owe you something. The xenia finally croaked after I changed lighting. How's the clown? Getting used to the tank yet? Link to comment
Mr. Fosi Posted October 23, 2007 Author Share Posted October 23, 2007 I've been searching but I haven't see it. I don't get it... It expected it to have at least made a brief appearance by now. I have been all over the tank with a maglight both with the main light on and off. I fed mysis in an attempt to lure it out but I have seen neither hide nor fin. This makes me wonder what it going on since I have no other livestock (that I know of) that would be a threat to a fish. I haven't seen any big worms or crabs that could make a meal of a healthy fish. Link to comment
bluebastion Posted October 23, 2007 Share Posted October 23, 2007 I've been searching but I haven't see it. I don't get it... It expected it to have at least made a brief appearance by now. I have been all over the tank with a maglight both with the main light on and off. I fed mysis in an attempt to lure it out but I have seen neither hide nor fin. This makes me wonder what it going on since I have no other livestock (that I know of) that would be a threat to a fish. I haven't seen any big worms or crabs that could make a meal of a healthy fish. And the plot thickens... that's interesting... you don't think the clowns are playing a practical joke? Link to comment
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