gena Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 natalia's back in da house . Nice to see you again . I LOVE your damsels...so colorful . Link to comment
cju84 Posted January 14, 2015 Share Posted January 14, 2015 Beautiful tank and aquascape!!! ^^ Love your palys! Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 14, 2015 Author Share Posted January 14, 2015 natalia's back in da house . Nice to see you again . I LOVE your damsels...so colorful . hiya Gena, it's good to see you too btw I need to clear out some space in my tank so I can buy some of that gorgeous purple monti of yours!!! I love my damsels too, but it's touch and go so far! I followed recommendations--odd number, single species (azure damsel, chrysiptera hemicyanea) and have intentionally overcrowded them (7 in a 37 gallon tank--the standard recommendation is 1 per 30 gallons) in an attempt to dilute aggression. So far it's going reasonably well. There is chasing and nipping, but nobody is being singled out. I won't declare success unless they all reach mature size (2 inches) without casualties. Link to comment
gena Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 hiya Gena, it's good to see you too btw I need to clear out some space in my tank so I can buy some of that gorgeous purple monti of yours!!! I love my damsels too, but it's touch and go so far! I followed recommendations--odd number, single species (azure damsel, chrysiptera hemicyanea) and have intentionally overcrowded them (7 in a 37 gallon tank--the standard recommendation is 1 per 30 gallons) in an attempt to dilute aggression. So far it's going reasonably well. There is chasing and nipping, but nobody is being singled out. I won't declare success unless they all reach mature size (2 inches) without casualties. oh wow...you have 7 of them? I NEED to see a FTS with all of them . Let me know when you are ready for the monticap . Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 oh wow...you have 7 of them? I NEED to see a FTS with all of them . Let me know when you are ready for the monticap . I'll take a FTS after the gyre arrives...too many pumps blocking the view right now! I just took out a gigantic Kenya tree and took it to the LFS. A little more pruning and I'll be ready for one of your montis Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Natalia, it is so good to hear from you. I am very sorry to hear about your seahorses though. That was upsetting to read that you were keeping up good husbandry and lower temperatures and they still succumbed to bacterial infections. I got my seahorses the beginning of Oct. They mated right away, (I ordered 2 females but was sent a male and female) so now I am raising fry. I started with 22, (I gave the rest away) and still have 15. They are 12 weeks old today. Your tank is stunning though, really beautiful. I am anxious to see the damsels in it. Link to comment
DaveFason Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 Looking awesome Natalia. Glad to see you update on here. -Dave Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Natalia, it is so good to hear from you. I am very sorry to hear about your seahorses though. That was upsetting to read that you were keeping up good husbandry and lower temperatures and they still succumbed to bacterial infections. I got my seahorses the beginning of Oct. They mated right away, (I ordered 2 females but was sent a male and female) so now I am raising fry. I started with 22, (I gave the rest away) and still have 15. They are 12 weeks old today. Your tank is stunning though, really beautiful. I am anxious to see the damsels in it. hi, it's great to hear from you too It was really upsetting to lose my seahorses, and so quickly too. I had them for a year and eight months, and I know they could have lived longer. The biggest irony is that shortly after I got them, I had a big hair algae bloom because I was still figuring out how to adjust my carbon dosing to accommodate the higher bioload. Not only that, but in late summer of 2013, the tank temp spiked to 90F when the pump feeding my chiller failed. They sailed through both of those problems without any ill effects at all. All that said, I'm thrilled that your seahorses are doing so well, and I hope they stay alive and happy for many years. And congratulations on your success with raising the fry, that's a fantastic accomplishment!!! Looking awesome Natalia. Glad to see you update on here. -Dave Thanks Dave Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 I like your zoas. They look like a zoa military base or something, all perfectly suited to their spot and ready to mobilize at a moments notice. Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 Nice Zoa garden! thank you I like your zoas. They look like a zoa military base or something, all perfectly suited to their spot and ready to mobilize at a moments notice. shhhh Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 hi, it's great to hear from you too It was really upsetting to lose my seahorses, and so quickly too. I had them for a year and eight months, and I know they could have lived longer. The biggest irony is that shortly after I got them, I had a big hair algae bloom because I was still figuring out how to adjust my carbon dosing to accommodate the higher bioload. Not only that, but in late summer of 2013, the tank temp spiked to 90F when the pump feeding my chiller failed. They sailed through both of those problems without any ill effects at all. All that said, I'm thrilled that your seahorses are doing so well, and I hope they stay alive and happy for many years. And congratulations on your success with raising the fry, that's a fantastic accomplishment!!! Thanks Dave What makes you think that it was bacterial infections that affected your seahorses, other than that is always the thing they are vulnerable to? Any idea what caused the onset of it? I am always looking for ways to head off possible bacterial infections for my own seahorses. Any words of wisdom? Like you I am diligent with husbandry and keep the temperature under 74 degrees. I use a probiotic daily in the system. I just wondered what else I should do? Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 What makes you think that it was bacterial infections that affected your seahorses, other than that is always the thing they are vulnerable to? Any idea what caused the onset of it? I am always looking for ways to head off possible bacterial infections for my own seahorses. Any words of wisdom? Like you I am diligent with husbandry and keep the temperature under 74 degrees. I use a probiotic daily in the system. I just wondered what else I should do? Mainly the speed with which it took hold, plus the fact that one of them showed some swelling in her tail. i wonder if the tank may have had excess organics due to coral feeding and to KZ additives. Maybe my softies were acting as a nutrient sink to prevent excess algae growth. From all I've read, excess dissolved organics are believed to be a major contributor to seahorse infection. I can't think of anything to recommend...it sounds like you're doing everything right. Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Mainly the speed with which it took hold, plus the fact that one of them showed some swelling in her tail. i wonder if the tank may have had excess organics due to coral feeding and to KZ additives. Maybe my softies were acting as a nutrient sink to prevent excess algae growth. From all I've read, excess dissolved organics are believed to be a major contributor to seahorse infection. I can't think of anything to recommend...it sounds like you're doing everything right. Thanks so much Natalia. That helps me know that doing (2) 5g WCs a week is not excessive in my 70g system. Along with my protein skimmers that should go a long way toward reducing dissolved organics. I am learning to feed them better with a lot less waste too. That should also help. Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 Thanks so much Natalia. That helps me know that doing (2) 5g WCs a week is not excessive in my 70g system. Along with my protein skimmers that should go a long way toward reducing dissolved organics. I am learning to feed them better with a lot less waste too. That should also help. That doesn't seem excessive to me for a seahorse system. I do one 5G WC a week on my 37g. Are you using a feeding station? I loved mine--it allowed me to do the whole feeding process and remove nearly all leftovers without ever sticking my hand in the tank. BTW, look what just came in the mail Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 That doesn't seem excessive to me for a seahorse system. I do one 5G WC a week on my 37g. Are you using a feeding station? I loved mine--it allowed me to do the whole feeding process and remove nearly all leftovers without ever sticking my hand in the tank. I have one and they used it but sometimes the flow there would blow the mysis off. I have been just using a turkey baster and blow out 1 mysis at a time until they eat it. Maybe I will try to angle my return a bit and try the feeding station again. They used to sit at, on or in it every morning waiting to be fed. It was very adorable! :-) Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 16, 2015 Author Share Posted January 16, 2015 That's normal, I had to angle the returns and turn one of the pumps off to feed as well. Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 16, 2015 Share Posted January 16, 2015 Now I am wondering if my WC is enough? I don't feed my corals but I have 5 fish in the system too. I am planning on re-homing the 2 lyre tail anthias but have dragged my feet about catching them. No doubt I will have to syphon most of the water out of the bowfront to get them, Uggh! Not a task I relish the thought of. Back to the WC schedule, I think I will add another day to be safe for now. Tue, Thurs and Sat will be WC days. Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Based on my limited experience, I kinda feel like you almost can't do enough water changes with seahorses. That said, water changes three days a week would be a massive PIA and maybe unnecessary depending on bioload. I'm thinking about getting a fish for my Nuvo 8. Anybody have suggestions? maybe: -coral croucher (would it irritate the zoas?) -goby/pistol shrimp combo (but not sold on that either because I have a big zoa colony sitting right on the sand bed) Any other ideas for a fish that would look interesting, stay little and be nice to my zoas? Link to comment
Mirya Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Normally I'd vote on goby/pistol shrimp, but given that the shrimp may decide to randomly bury your zoas one night... Brainstorming... greenbanded gobies, redhead gobies, eviota gobies, other ORA gobies or blennies, geometric pygmy perchlet, Helfrichi's firefish Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Ooh, those are great ideas, thank you! Link to comment
vlangel Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Yellow clown gobies or Citron gobies are cute and I don't think they would be overly irritating to your corals. Link to comment
natalia_la_loca Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Those would be good too...I love their big heads Link to comment
Mirya Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 OK, so me surfing fish and coral on the net, instead of writing the article that I am supposed to be doing, stumbled upon this: Half-Barred Goby (Priolepis semidoliata) They get an inch big and are reportedly peaceful but there honestly isn't a lot of info on them. I found them for sale at ThatPetPlace and BlueZooAquatics. I thought they were pretty darn cute and then thought of your tank. I've never ordered from either of those places though. Link to comment
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