Sublunary's 12 Gallons

[sublunary]

I'm not really sure what to do. Rescaping seems to be the default answer to aggression problems. So I might shake things up a bit and see if that helps.

 

I don't know what to do for the little guy with the missing tail fin though. I have no idea if something that severe will grow back. Any suggestions?

[Markushka]

I'm not really sure what to do. Rescaping seems to be the default answer to aggression problems. So I might shake things up a bit and see if that helps.

 

I don't know what to do for the little guy with the missing tail fin though. I have no idea if something that severe will grow back. Any suggestions?

 

It definitely can grow back. My clown lost his entire tail and now its coming back. I'd recommend isolating or qting if you can.

[sublunary]

That makes me feel better. I'm using my usual QT for the shrimp larvae. Maybe I'll stick it in the net breeder with some rubble and chaeto to hide in.

 

Assuming I can catch it, of course...

[AlisaMac]

I've got this same tank (verrrrry early stages) but this one gets me very inspired for whats to come!

[animalmaster6]

That makes me feel better. I'm using my usual QT for the shrimp larvae. Maybe I'll stick it in the net breeder with some rubble and chaeto to hide in.

 

Assuming I can catch it, of course...

The containers that LFS use would be better because of more space but net breeders will work.

 

The tail should grow back.

[sublunary]

I haven't seen the injured goby, or the suspected troublemaker in the past couple of days. But then again, I haven't been home much. Tonight or tomorrow will be tank cleaning time, so I'll have an chance to move some stuff around and see if I can isolate one of them.

 

In the meantime, Coral magazine's website has a pretty awesome article on The Myth-Shrouded Spikefin Goby

 

The article seems to verify my hypothesis that peaceful, open water swimming fish make the gobies more comfortable and willing to come out and be seen.

 

It also suggests that the gobies dig pits as part of mating or egg-rearing. (!) If that's true it would explain my fishes' weird obsession with that hole they suddenly dug, and possibly the aggression....

[animalmaster6]

That's a pretty great article!

[sublunary]

Things got busy and I let this thread go nearly a month again. I haven't done much with the tank aside from usual maintenance and cleaning. And I desperately need to clean again. For some reason there's this film algae covering the glass as fast as I can mag-float it away. Maybe I need another big snail or two...

 

My shrimp raising experiements haven't gone too far. The first hatch died within 48 hours. the second hatch did better - I even got a dozen or so larvae to z2! But my brine stopped hatching and I had to supplement dry food, which is why I think they didn't make it to the second molt. I'm asking for a 10gallon for christmas, so I can try the next batch in a roomier tank.

 

And now, pictures. Apologies for the dirty glass.

 

Trimma goby, basking in the sun

 

T. maxima I've had for almost 5 months now and I don't think I've posted any picture of. Poor guy has som algae on him, but he doesn't seem to mind.

 

 

And because I love my shrimp...

 

 

These two have been thick as thieves.

 

While cleaning a few weeks ago, I pulled out a chunk of halimeda that was bugging me. Uprooting it destroyed the little hole the gobies had dug. So now they're building a new one in the front corner.

 

 

 

 

I was hoping to get a video of them carrying pebbles in their mouths, but once I got the camera out, they stopped excavating and this was the best I could get.

[animalmaster6]

Those are some amazing shots of the gobies. I'm glad they're still doing great.

[sublunary]

I had some free time today and was playing around with the cheap little usb microscope my parents bought me last christmas. I can't seem to get any underwater stuff to focus on more than the lowest magnification, and can only see stuff on/near the glass, but still fun to play with.

 

The best pictures I got were:

 

Hermit crab's crazy eyes

 

munid isopod:

 

and feather duster

 

Nothing like close ups to show you how much my glass is scratched.

[Svobodin]

and feather duster

 

That is an amazing shot! potm imo.

[weeber]

so are all three of the gobies doing good now?

[animalmaster6]

I love that feather duster!

[Markushka]

How are the gobies getting along? I think I may pick up one of these for the 46 I'm setting up If its still running and I have cash by the summer.

[sublunary]

That is an amazing shot! potm imo.

 

Wow, thanks!

 

so are all three of the gobies doing good now?

 

It's a little hard to tell actually. The two that seem to have paired up are really active and doing great. The one that was injured became pretty reclusive. I was never able to catch him. I've seen him peek his head out of a rock a couple of times, so I know he's still in there, but I don't know how he's doing. I hope he's ok.

 

I did some messing around in the tank today, so they were all higing when I got the camera out, but I have some other pictured for you.

 

Finally a new FTS. If only the torch wouldn't decide to close up every single time I try to take pictures.

 

I gave away my yuma to an NJRC guy who was redoing a tank from a friend who really needed it. I did keep the last baby it left me tho. This one attached itself to the shell, which has been filled with glue and glued down to avoid theft by hermit crab.

 

One of my first purchases, still chugging away.

 

Porcelain crab stole the FPGs' spot

 

The most we usually see of the pom pom crab

 

Male Trimma goby (if that article I read applies to this trimma species)

 

Female Trimma, too young or too stupid to know what to do with the spots the male keeps cleaning

[sublunary]

strangers in the night...

I wish it weren't so yellow, but turning the lights on spooked the pom pom.

 

Anyone know what this is?

Two of my hitchhiker dusters are covered in this webby-looking stuff today. When I first noticed it, the feathers were out, but it's been retracted in the tube since I took the picture. I've noticed it once before, and turkey bastered it off since it looked like it was irritating the worm. But it's back. It doesn't look like the descriptions other people have posted of spawning or excretion, so I'm stumped. And it happens to this one and a second one (which I can't photograph because it's in the middle of the tank behind a mushroom) at the same time.

 

 

Edit: with the feathers out

[sublunary]

Wow 3 months, no update. Bad me!

 

The delay has been caused mostly by me being crazy with school, and partially because of algae. The bubble algae I thought I has under control suddenly exploded in numbers and I still haven't gotten it in hand. I also finally got the bryopsis/hair algae/whatever the hell it was on top of the back rock under control, only to have it replaced by something just as annoying and even harder to manually remove. And then there's the red stuff... it's a never ending battle that i don't have time for. And right now, the tank looks like this:

 

 

Things have been pretty much just chugging along. A month or two ago I got some nerites. They seemed to be doing great until a couple of weeks later, when I bought 2 scarlet hermits and caught one eating one of the snails. The other 3 snails disappeared shortly after that. I don't know why I have so much trouble with snails. Since I started the tank, I've lost 1 margarita, 3 ceriths, 1 bumblebee, 4 nerites, 1 dove shell, a bunch of nassarius and several stomatellas. All those snails and I have 1 cerith, 1 bumblebee and 2 margaritas left alive. (in addition to the army of collonistas and rhissoids.) I don't get it.

 

Anyway, since I don't have anything new to show you, I thought I'd put up some growth comparison pics.

 

This one shroom, which just sat there for over a year...

 

has recently become 4

 

My poor disaster-prone acan...

 

has sprouted two new heads!

 

The baby yuma that I discovered as just a blob back in the beginning of 2010...

 

now actually looks like a ricordea.

 

My mystery LPS that looked like this last fall...

 

Changed color and started growing like mad when I moved it into an area of higher light.

 

And my favorite piece, the gorg I got from Mark last summer...

 

is just branching like crazy.

 

And of course, while I was taking pictures, one of the FPGs popped out, demanding to know what I was doing. If only that corner of the tank were easier to photograph...

[animalmaster6]

The FPG looks great!

 

Hope the Bryopsis problem gets resolved soon.

[Markushka]

Woah that gorg looks great and so do the other corals. I hope you manage to get the HA under control tho. I've always used urchins to help with my algae problems, maybe they'll work for you too.

 

And if it is the evil bryopsis, well all you can really do is mag dose. I still have some of my home-made mag if you want, I can hook you up when I get home.

[sublunary]

Thanks for the kind words guys. The new problem algae doesn't seem to be byropsis. I have no idea what it is, actually.

 

And I have some bad news. Cleaning the tank today I found one of my Trimmas lying in the sand dead. The other one is no where to be found.

 

I have no idea what happened. The were both acting normal yesterday and the body looked clean of injury and disease. I haven't done anything but normal maintenance lately. None of the clean up crew would touch it, so it must have just happened. I really hope the second one is just hiding somewhere. I love those little fish, I'd hate to lose both of them.

[animalmaster6]

Sorry to hear

[sublunary]

Thanks AM.

 

The second Trimma never reappeared and this morning I lost one of my cleaner shrimp. He wouldn't eat yesterday, so I was worried something was up with him.

 

I hate losing anything, but 3 previously healthy animals in such quick succession? Something must be seriously wrong. Everything else appears to be doing well and tests are all where they should be. I'm at a complete loss. This is the worst part of this hobby...

[sublunary]

And just because I had time today, here's a FTS of the cleaned-up tank.

 

[Markushka]

The tank looks amazing!! the gorg has really taken off! I wish i had the patience to do the same.

[kidninja]

looks cool! good job!