whatisee Posted April 10, 2007 Share Posted April 10, 2007 Just picked this up on a group by from Pacific East Aquaculture. The Cowrie was on sale for 8.99...not bad. I also picked up a Fire Shrimp on sale for 19.99. The cowrie comes out at night so I was able to just grab this picture. No picture of the Fire Shrimp yet. Very happy with this purchase. It's Hawaiian Algae Cowrie Link to comment
Helfrichs Chick Posted April 10, 2007 Share Posted April 10, 2007 Good luck. I have heard stories of them eating corals, including Zoas, Shrooms/Rics and anemones. These were all large however and your guy looks tiny. Cool find. Link to comment
whatisee Posted April 10, 2007 Author Share Posted April 10, 2007 Good luck. I have heard stories of them eating corals, including Zoas, Shrooms/Rics and anemones. These were all large however and your guy looks tiny. Cool find. Thank you The only thing I have in the tank that he might like is my Sebae Anemone. No Zoo's or shrooms in this tank. He's about 3/4" long and is an algae eater. (mostly) I do have my eye on him. I do know the Caribbean Cowrie grows much bigger and does eat corals. Link to comment
c est ma Posted April 10, 2007 Share Posted April 10, 2007 Well, of course there are tons of cowry species, and not all are carnivores. This one could also be the species known as the Hawaiian Snake Head, which is a known algae eater: http://www.waquarium.org/MLP/root/html/Mar...eheadCowry.html At any rate, cowries are cool critters, and it would be great to have a reef-safe species to observe! Good luck. --Diane PS: Nice pic! Link to comment
whatisee Posted April 10, 2007 Author Share Posted April 10, 2007 Well, of course there are tons of cowry species, and not all are carnivores. This one could also be the species known as the Hawaiian Snake Head, which is a known algae eater: http://www.waquarium.org/MLP/root/html/Mar...eheadCowry.html At any rate, cowries are cool critters, and it would be great to have a reef-safe species to observe! Good luck. --Diane PS: Nice pic! That looks to be the one I have. Thanks for the great ID website info. It does have a snake like head hiding within it's shell. It's amazing how they can extend and contract their 'radula' while feeding. Pretty cool stuff. Link to comment
Withers Posted April 10, 2007 Share Posted April 10, 2007 Anyone have any experiences with Tolkien Cowry's? I just got one a few weeks ago and now you've got me nervous. Link to comment
whatisee Posted April 10, 2007 Author Share Posted April 10, 2007 Anyone have any experiences with Tolkien Cowry's? I just got one a few weeks ago and now you've got me nervous. I did a little searching for you and found out that the Tolkein Cowrie is also know as the Tiger Cowrie. Be careful The Tiger Cowrie has an egg-shaped, spotted, glossy shell and is in high demand for the rock aquarium. It differs in color depending upon geographical location. While it does not have an operculum to shut when it retracts its mantle into its shell, the opening is lined with "threatening" tooth-like structures. Normally, the mantle will completely cover its shell unless it feels threatened. This helps it keep its lustrous white and brown mottled coloration, while its mantle will appear like a fingerprint of black and gray, with many short papillae over the surface. In the wild, it can be found under rocks or resting on soft corals during the day, foraging for food mostly at night. The Tiger Cowrie prefers a rock aquarium with hiding places. While small, it will eat some algae and scavenge for scraps, but as an adult, it will eat some anemones, sponges, and soft corals, and is best housed with starfish, sea urchins, and tubeworms in the reef aquarium. Do not house it with Condylactis sp. It needs low nitrate levels and will not tolerate copper-based medications. The diet of a large Tiger Cowrie should be supplemented with pieces of fish and mussel, and a product such as TetraTips. Link to comment
Withers Posted April 10, 2007 Share Posted April 10, 2007 Hmm, the only soft corals I have are zoanthids and a gorgonian, so I guess I'll keep an eye out, but I know that melev on RC has a HUGE tiger cowry in his tank and he's never said anything about having problems with it. Link to comment
whatisee Posted April 10, 2007 Author Share Posted April 10, 2007 Hmm, the only soft corals I have are zoanthids and a gorgonian, so I guess I'll keep an eye out, but I know that melev on RC has a HUGE tiger cowry in his tank and he's never said anything about having problems with it. Yeah...I guess the safer you are the less $ it'll cost you. They are fun to watch at night. I need to get my moonlights setup. Link to comment
c est ma Posted April 15, 2007 Share Posted April 15, 2007 'Tolkien's cowry" is such a great name! A google search was quite interesting... BTW, there are times, for me, when the inverts get as interesting, or even more so, than the corals...(The other inverts, I should say! ) --Diane Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.